Love is stronger than anything
by BlackblackAngel
Summary: Hello everyone! My name is Jessica; I'm a normal girl, I have my work, my interests, my friends...I live a perfectly normal life, a bit stressful at times, but there's nothing that is able to make me really allar...OMG AN ALIEN IN MY HOUSE! [OC/Yautja; rated M for sexual content]
1. Surprise

**ATTENTION: before you start reading this story it's better if you read even my previous story (pleaaaaaase). Why? Continue to follow me and you will find out :)**

And we're back in a new adventure! I hope you enjoy and that you support me with many good reviews! (or maybe correcting some mistake). But first an important thing: I have to thank the person who, unconsciously, inspired me for this story, she always made me happy for what I wrote, and maybe I was a little infected by her optimism; and then: Cityhunterluv, I hope you like my story, because it's for you :)

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 _1\. Surprise_

 _U.S.A. Florida, not far from the coast..._

Work, work, work...and guess what, work! In this last month, my life has been reduced to arrange paperwork, answer the phone, make appointments and bear Samantha, my boss, who recently was difficult to handle at work for her constant bickering with her husband, now decided to seek divorce. She has always been an honest and affable person, but in recent times I could no longer bear this dual role of secretary/psychologist that she had given me; I was in her company for just six months and I liked my work, but recently it had been particularly stressful and even though I knew that these periods of work stress could happen, I couldn't wait to get back to my normal daily rhythm. I was so focused on what I was doing to realize only after someone was standing in front of my desk, waiting; I looked up, it was Claire

"You should take a break, honey, or you will go crazy" she said with a smile

"I'm already crazy" I replied amused

"Come on, let's go eat; at least you can relax a little your nerves"

"Huh?" I looked at the watch on my wrist, and I realized it was time for lunch; the work was so much that I had lost track of time. I got up and followed Claire to the company canteen, chatting pleasantly. I met Claire shortly after I was hired and I immediately thought that she was very nice; I really liked her thick red hair and the way she settled her glasses when she was nervous; but she always complimented for my brown hair, long and straight, and each time she told me to bring them loose, and not collected as I usually did; we were both of medium height, neither too fat nor too thin, but recently I was committed to going to the gym to make my body more athletic and relax the nerves when I was nervous: nothing was more relaxing than to punch a big sack boxing until exhausting the energy. We continued to talk about this and that even in the canteen, and with trays in the hands we looked for a place to sit

"Hey Jess! Over here!" said a voice behind me; I turned and saw Mark along with his other colleagues who beckoned to his table; I sighed heavily, that day I didn't at all want to talk to him...but surely Claire wanted to have a chat and so I was forced to accept his invitation

"Glad to see you, you and your nice little ass" he said as I sat down

"As usual you left your brain to the gym, Mark" I said with a smile; I met him by chance here in the canteen; he wasn't a bad guy, he was nice and funny, but sometimes he was a little too much bully and never missed an opportunity to boast of his biceps and pectorals, due to years and years of training and weightlifting, and his amorous conquests, a list too long for anyone; and unfortunately it seemed that he had chosen me as his next victim, when Claire would make false papers to get his attention; I was displeased for her and her unrequited love and for me, because every time I had to put up with an indefinite amount of unwanted compliments and invent a thousand excuses not to go out with him. After lunch, as I had learned to do for the past three months, I got up before the others and greeted them to return to work, avoiding attempts at courtship of Mark; Claire followed me in the corridor, walking by my side

"I repeat that you're wrong Jessica, you should at least try to go out with him" she said, beginning a speech that we had already faced more than once

"I don't understand why you act like this, when you would like to be the one to jump on him, you and your hormones"

"I'd love to, but I don't want certainly be a problem between you"

"I've already explained to you, Claire: he can be handsome, muscular and sexy as you want, but, really, he isn't my type; if it were up to me, you could do whatever you want with him"

"Hmmm, Jess don't say these things" she whispered lustful "when I think of what I could do with him and his muscles...rrrrrr!"

I shook my head resigned, but I couldn't help smiling; we both went back to our work, and although I was happy to keep my mind focused on other things, today I couldn't wait to finish the day as soon as possible. When I finally came home I was exhausted, the few kilometers that separated my work place from my house seemed a journey that lasted years, probably because of the traffic that I met along the way; I sank down on the sofa in the living room and stood there motionless for several minutes to relax the muscles and mind, before getting up again and put me at ease; I went up the stairs to my room and after opening the door I undressed slowly, eager to wear my pajamas and prepare something to eat; I had just started wearing pants when the home phone rang, I picked it up

"Hello?"  
"Hello darling, are you okay?"

"Hi mom, everything's fine, as the night before and the night before that" I replied "and I thought I told you that it was time to stop calling me every night" my voice was hard; It was the fourth time that I asked such a thing, at first I was kind but now it was time to insist stubbornly; I loved my mother, but when she didn't listen to me, she forced me to take a hostile attitude, it was the only way to make her understand things

"I'm sorry darling, try to understand me; you left home only three months ago, and I worry knowing that my little girl is alone in her new home, I thought to help keeping you company at night..."

"Mom, you have to look at it from a different perspective: I haven't left home for _only_ three months, I went away for _already_ three months!" I said, continuing to get dressed " I told you not to worry, work is fine and my colleagues are good people; I know it is the duty of every mother be concerned about their children but now I am old enough to take care of myself; and you'll never get used to the idea of having me away if you don't start at least to give it a try" the paradoxical thing was that when my mother had realized that excessive distance from the workplace would have forced me to crazy hours, she was the first to propose to move to a area closer, offering to help me with the expenses of the house; I had to endure three months of hard work and crazy hours, and when I finally moved into the new house she began to become anxious

"Forgive me darling, I promise you that this time I'll try"

"I know that you'll, don't think that I don't love you, mom"

"I'll call you then tomorr...I mean I'll call you in a few days"

"Okay, bye mum" I greeted her and hung up. I dined quickly and hurried to clean; I hoped to spend a few hours at my favorite activity before bedtime: drawing; I loved to draw, and even if I didn't consider myself an artist I thought I was pretty good; so I took my sketch pad and sat comfortably in the living room, letting my imagination flow freely, creating imaginary landscapes, fantastic creatures or aliens from other worlds; I was fascinated by that world, and although it was pure fiction I was sure that everyone at least once in life wanted to be part of it; I needed it, it made my days less monotonous; almost instinctively, the pencil traced shapes and lines on the paper, and slowly began to form a picture...

I awoke up suddenly, panting; I frantically moved the gaze from one point to another to realize that I had fallen asleep on the sofa and my sketchbook had fallen to the floor, along with the pencil; probably I was the only person able to fall asleep drawing; the dogs of the nearby continued to dazzle and seemed to have no intention to stop, maybe it was the loud noise they were making to wake me. I got up from the sofa and picked up the sketchbook and pencil, laid them on the dining room table; I went upstairs and looked out the window to see if there was something wrong; from here I could see my garden, my pool and part of the way; it didn't seem that there was anything wrong, if they didn't stop barking in the next ten minutes I would go to the nearby to ask to stop them, tomorrow it would be a long day and I had to rest peacefully; I looked up at the starry sky, enjoying the cloudless night...one moment...there was something odd; maybe I was just imagining but it seemed that a star was moving; no, it couldn't be a star, the stars certainly weren't so close to Earth; perhaps it was a plane or something, but when the planes were shining like that? I decided it was time to check, maybe that thing was emitting sounds that animals could perceive; in any case I was going to the nearby.

I opened the closet and put on a housecoat, then went down the stairs again...but as soon as I set foot on the last step a terrible rumble hit my ears, as if something big had exploded right near here; at the same time the walls of the house trembled, some objects fell from the furniture and I grabbed strongly the stair railing to avoid falling; a shiver of terror ran through my body and instinctively I let out a cry; the earthquake was so sudden that I was scared to death; the tremor lasted just a few more seconds, ceasing immediately after.

Terrified, I ran out the door of the house with the intention to get away as much as possible, but I didn't have time to start running that my attention focused on the terrible sight in front of me: my pool was almost completely destroyed, the water was everywhere and...a big...huge... _something_ was inside; it was something black... it had an odd shape...I was scared, but I had to pass in front of the pool if I wanted to get out of the gate and go into the street. I took courage and stepped slowly...it was absurd to admit it, but it looked like one of those futuristic ships you could see in science fiction movies, very small, and it was overturned on one side; I had to leave, I had to get to that **fucking** gate! But I went to that kind of spaceship, very, very slowly...a sudden noise startled me, the ship did some mechanical sounds not very reassuring; I waited several seconds before advancing again, my heart pounding with fear; almost I screamed when something gripped the edge of my pool...t-that...was that a hand?! I approached a little more...and I regretted having done so.

A huge, massive creature came out of the pool; the few lights that had not been destroyed reflected the light on his metal armor and on his wet skin, illuminating a green substance on his chest; a mask covered his face and long...dread, I thought, fell on his shoulders; _Oh my God._..


	2. Rescue

_2\. Rescue_

My body didn't stop shaking, and fear had immobilized my limbs; I could just keep watching with terror that being who moved his head from side to side. He was huge, almost two meters high, perhaps at first could be mistaken for a human being, but a closer look was enough to understand right away that he wasn't; he brought a hand to his throat and bent slightly forward; he walked slowly, and it seemed that he was staggering. My survival instinct forced my legs to step back, taking a step every time he did it; but after a few seconds the creature fell to his knees, continuing to keep the throat and emitting strange sounds that made me shiver; he looked up...and for a moment I thought he was looking at me...then slumped to the ground, lying on his side.

It was my chance, the perfect opportunity to run away; I turned toward the gate and was about to escape...but I didn't move; something held me back; it couldn't have been just my impression...he had looked at me, or maybe I wanted to convince myself that it was so; I turned back toward the creature, the green substance that flowed from his body...maybe...maybe he was wounded; still afraid I approached slowly and knelt at his side, touching him several times with a finger to test his reaction; he stood there, motionless; I placed a trembling hand on his chest, ignoring those little spikes poked my skin; _oh shit_... _he wasn't breathing_ _!_ Perhaps he had been drinking the pool water! He risked having a cardiac arrest!

Panic took possession of me, but lasted only a moment; ok, ok, calm...errr...maybe he breathed in another way, since he wasn't human, but I couldn't be sure, I had to do everything possible...err...the mask, I had to remove his mask; I took it in my hands and tried to pull it away, but was connected to some small tubes and before removing the mask I had to remove even those, from which water came out and I could smell the chlorine of the pool. I lifted the mask...oh Christ...I couldn't look away from his face, from his skull so wide, and those big mandibles; and yet...and yet... _I couldn't_ _let him die_. I pushed his body so put it in a supine position, then I grabbed him behind the neck and pushed upward; I couldn't close his nostrils because he had no nose; with the other hand I opened the mandibles; ok, Jess...prepare yourself psychologically...take a deep breath...

I pressed my lips against his mouth, exhaling deeply; It seemed to work, his thorax rose up as I continued to pump air into his chest; I repeated the action over and over again, but the creature didn't seem to breathe independently and I was getting tired for the effort; but I didn't give up and went on, my lungs burning in my chest; and finally a surge of water came out of his mouth; I looked back at his face and I realized that, fortunately or not, he was still unconscious, but his breathing seemed normal now. I took a big sigh of relief, even though I didn't know why; my attention focused on that green substance coming out of a wound he had on his stomach, and I guessed that it could be his blood; I had to stop the bleeding somehow, I had a medical kit for emergencies at home but I couldn't treat him properly if he remained here; I tried to move him, but it was obvious that he was too heavy for me, I had to think quickly to a solution.

 _A few minutes later..._

"Hello, Jess?"

"hello Mark, look I know it's late but you should come now to my house please, do you remember the way?" I said in one breath, while I grabbed the medical kit and a blanket and went out of the house again

"! You just cannot stay without me, huh?" his amused tone rasped on my nerves

" _Mark,_ _please, I_ _need you to come_ _here_ _immediately_ " I begged him desperately

"...o-okay...I will come as soon as possible, I remember the path"

"Thanks, see you soon" I ended the call and slipped the phone into the pocket, then I ran back near the alien (I didn't know how else to define him) and I knelt down, taking the disinfectant and a clean cloth; without the possibility of raise him, I couldn't do much but at least disinfected his wounds and stopped the blood, and it took some time, because the cut was really deep; and while I took care of him, I kept thinking that maybe I had become crazy: no sane person would have been so close to that creature; anyone would call the police, would invent any excuse and would make sure that someone saw this mess; but no, I was still here, without even knowing if that being could be dangerous; maybe I've seen too many science fiction movies. I washed his wound with some water, then I sat down and waited for the arrival of Mark, wrapping the blanket around my shoulders.

As the minutes passed I took the opportunity to examine him better: the physiognomy seemed really that of a human being, but as I found his skin was much thicker and his nails were like claws; his armor was unusual and I dared not to touch any of his objects, although I noticed the necklace of tiny skulls and bones around his neck, not very reassuring; the body was massive and vigorous, the strong arms and sculpted abs, a muscular chest...h-hey! Now I was really looking too much! Blushing, I took off the blanket and covered him, it was a cold tonight; ok, I was officially an idiot. Few more minutes passed before Mark rang at my gate; I got up quickly and ran immediately to let him in; I was surprised to see him with a dress particularly elegant, like he was surprised to see me in my dressing gown and pajamas, I understood it by his gaze; surely he was going to make a joke but I stopped him, grabbing him by the arm

"You will not believe this, then I'll let you see" I had no alternative, I needed help. As soon as he set foot in my garden he couldn't help noticing the spacecraft crashed in my pool, but when he saw the alien lying on the ground his expression became unreadable

"...let me understand well, your friend has just returned drunk from a costume party, and you want my help to wake him?"

"He isn't human" I said; I was sure that in that moment he thought I was crazy, and maybe I was, but when he bent to touch him and realized that those mandibles were not fake he opened his mouth in a large "O" and stepped back scared

" **Oh shit!** "

"You must help me take him home, he's hurt, he needs help"

" **What?!** "  
"Mark, _please!_ " I felt tears in my eyes, I was terribly nervous; also I was still confused and I could hardly believe what was happening, what was happening _to me_ , but I wouldn't have left him there on the ground, never; Mark looked at me a moment, then shrugged and sighed

"What one wouldn't do for a pretty girl" he said smiling, although he couldn't hide the tremor in his voice. We had to remove his armor, and we noticed a set of weapons that I didn't like at all, putting seriously into question my choice to help the alien; Mark grabbed his arm and lifted him onto his back, straining the muscles to the maximum; while I carried his armor (and I had to make two trips to carry all the pieces), Mark dragged him into the house and made him lie on my sofa in the dining room

"Wait" I said as I placed his objects "I have to bandage his wounds" and so while Mark held him I put the bandages around his chest, bandaging even a slight wound on his arm; once we finished, we laid him back on the sofa and I put a blanket over him. Silence filled the room for a few long seconds; I sat on the floor, rubbing the eyes with exhaustion; Mark sighed heavily

"All this is absurd..." he said putting his hands in the hair

"I know" I didn't know what to say

"Why you didn't call someone?"

"This is a good question, maybe it was for the emergency of the moment, he was dying suffocated before you arrived, I had to give him artificial respiration" I said, perhaps speaking more than necessary  
"...you!...did you _kissed_ that thing?!"

I turned to him surprised; well, technically it was true, but I hadn't paid much attention to this because of the critical situation; the taste of his mouth involuntarily came to my mind, and I was surprised that I wasn't too disgusted, perhaps because it wasn't at all horrible...

"We have to talk to someone" Mark said, interrupting my thoughts

"...I don't think is the best thing to do"

"I can understand why you think so, the authorities may do strange experiments, but we don't know if this guy is aggressive or not, although looking at the weapons that brings with him I wouldn't be surprised if he will cut our heads at the first opportunity"

"Maybe he might just decide to go away with his spaceship..." I looked at the alien and his skin, a cream-colored stained with brown; rationally it was madness keep him here, actually it could be dangerous, but I rejected the option to call the authorities and probably also knew the reason: of all people in the world that could happen something like that, it had happened to me, that fantasy world that everyone dreamed had fallen just in my house, and I didn't want to let it go

"Jess?" Mark looked at me puzzled, probably noticing my thoughtful expression

"...would you like to prepare some hot chocolate?" I told him with a smile "I need sugar to think clearly, you can find everything in the pantry in the top" I needed time, I was still too much confused. Mark limited himself to a shrug and went into the kitchen adjacent to the dining room; I stood up and took the sketchbook left on the table, sleep was impossible and I needed to distract me. I didn't even have time to put the pencil on the paper that a noise caught my attention, a moan, like that of a wounded animal; I turned and saw that the alien was moving, bringing a hand to his head; my heart raced with excitement and fear; I approached him cautiously, watching as he sat and continued to hold his head; I couldn't resist the temptation to say something

"Are...are you ok?" I asked him; our eyes met, and I held my breath: two ice-blue eyes stared at me, confused and perplexed; I stood motionless staring at them...they were so beautiful...

The alien jumped up from the couch and grabbed me by the neck, lifting me from the floor; he roared and opened his mandibles, scaring me to death; his grip was strong, my body was shivering with fear, while some tears bathed my cheeks...oh Christ, _was I going to_ _die_ _?_

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Sooooooo, I hope you liked this chapter. It's very diffcult to try to imagine a situation like this, so if you want to give me some advice for the story I will accept them willingly :) In any case write a review to tell me what you think, I also accept criticism :)


	3. Alien?

Guys I really don't know what to say, I mean I started to write this story just short time ago and you already gave me so much support...thank you! Your reviews are very useful, so continue to tell me if you like my story or maybe if there is something that can be written better or in a different way; let's work together :) However here is the third chapter, I hope you enjoy!

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 _3\. Alien?_

I tried desperately to bring the air in my lungs, and my eyes, wet with tears, could do nothing but stare at the face of the alien; his mandibles clicked continuously and he kept looking at me; if he wanted to kill me he would already done so, it seemed rather that he was examining me, but it was impossible to remain calm and my body continued to tremble with fear

" **You** **dirty** **son** **of a bitch** **!** " it was Mark's voice, but I couldn't look at him; the alien turned to him, growling ferociously; in that moment I feared that Mark could do something very stupid and so it happened: as soon as he walked into my field of vision, I saw Mark charge against the creature, but was thrown back with a violent slap, and I heard a loud thud on the floor; the alien roared again, that idiot had made him even angrier. I was terrified, but if I was going to die and I wanted to at least make a last and desperate attempt to save me; with an incredible effort I raised a hand and tried to attract the attention of the alien, he turned to me with those icy eyes that now seemed to me so terrifying; I pointed to his chest, the wound was reopened and the bandages were stained with blood; he turned his gaze where I had indicated and touched the bandages with his free hand, then he refocused on me

"D-don't..." every word was painful, but I continued, taking big gulps of air "Y-you should not tire yourself in this w-way...y-you need to rest, d-do you understand?" I wasn't sure he could understand my language, but I continued to indicate his chest, hoping to make him realize that we weren't hostile. The alien brought me closer to him, so close that I could feel his breath on my face; his mandibles clicked and our eyes met again, although I couldn't see well because of tears; and then, to my surprise, he set me down on the floor and slowly left my throat, without hurting me; only then he let out a moan of pain, sitting back down on the sofa and placing a hand on the cut in the stomach; probably the effort had exhausted him; I was looking at him in a daze, while I resumed some air

" _Jessica!_ " Mark grabbed me by the shoulders and forced me to retreat a few meters by the alien "are you ok? Are you hurt?"

"No..." I turned to him and saw that he had a split lip "he didn't hurt me, I think...I think it's a reasonable alien"

" _Reasonable?!_ He could kill us! We have to call someone immediately!"

"No, Mark don't make things worse" I thought that maybe the creature had felt threatened and reacted consequently, I didn't dare to imagine what could happen if we called the police or someone else  
"I'm just trying to save our lives!" Mark yanked me by the arm, intending to take home phone; I resisted with force and got rid from his grasp, he stopped to look at me "we must take advantage of it until he is wounded!"

"We must at least _try_ to talk to him, I believe that..."

" _What the hell is wrong with you Jess?!_ " he exclaimed; I also wanted to know, I risked my life and yet I persisted in wanting to talk to him; why...Mark continued

"Let's get out of here before...!"

" _Shut_ _up,_ _Ooman_ _,_ _your_ _cries_ _are even worse_ _of a_ _Kainde_ _Amheda_ "

I stopped breathing the instant when I heard those words, and finally even Mark fell silent; we both turned to the alien, he breathed deeply and still keep a hand on the wound; I walked toward him, Mark tried to stop me but I got rid from his grasp with a jerk; I walked over to the sofa  
"You...you just..."

" _Have you_ _taken care of_ _me_ _?_ " he pointed to the wound; still upset, I could only do a nod with the head; I watched him as he carried a hand to his chest and bowed his head slightly

" _My thanks,_ _I am indebted_ _to you_ "

I broke into tears, but I couldn't tell whether for joy or to vent the accumulated tension; my emotions were out of control, no matter how I tried to remain calm; I wanted to say something, anything, but my chest hurt so badly that it was already so if I could still breathe. What a poor figure...Mark helped me; he clasped my shoulders gently, a gesture that on other occasions I would find annoying but that now seemed very comforting

"Well, er, I would say that we all have exaggerated somewhat" he stared at me with guilty expression, perhaps he realized that he acted too impulsively, but in the end I couldn't blame him that much "let's start all over again, ok big guy?"

 _Some time later..._

"Are you sure you'll be okay? Really, I can stay..." insisted Mark, staying in the middle between the gate and the road

"Samantha is too nervous during this period and will not be happy when I'll tell her that I will not come to work tomorrow, I need someone who can keep her under control for a while and time to get organized in the next few days, therefore you have to be well rested and ready to endure a long and exhausting day of work, thanks for the help Mark" I said with a forced smile, trying to be nice, but at that moment I just wanted him to go away

"Okay, okay, but let me know if anything goes wrong, okay?" he said smiling

"Absolutely, well...good night"

"Good night" and before I could step back he gave me a kiss on the cheek and walked away. I closed the gate behind me and snorted in frustration, it still didn't seem to me true that I was able to convince him to go away with a similar motivation; well, I hadn't lied, but luckily he listened to me, that...that... _fucking bastard!_ Okay, okay, I had to admit it: he was the only person I knew in the neighborhood who could help me and even though it was late evening he hadn't thought twice about coming to my rescue; he had been kind, and I wouldn't have done too much trouble to return the favor in some way...but take advantage of the situation to ask an appointment was ridiculous, and of course I couldn't refuse; at the end we just had to go out together and have a coffee at the bar, nothing special, but...gnnnn, the mere thought of this made me go on a rampage! I took yet another deep breath and prepared to return home, there was something else...well, someone else that demanded my attention. When I closed the door behind me he was still there, sitting on the sofa, tinkering with the pieces of his armor out of which came a few sparks. Ne'veah, his name was Ne'veah, and I couldn't get more out of my head the sound of that word; the only other thing I knew was that his race was called _Yautja_ and that, at least for the moment, he doesn't seem willing to kill us, but nothing else; however, now that Mark was gone maybe I could talk to him more calmly...it seemed to me incredible: I was more at ease with an alien twice my size that with an insistent suitor! I approached him, still a little intimidated, and I looked at him as he pressed a few buttons on a piece of his armor; his expression seemed a little tense

"Do you have...some sort of problem?" I ventured to ask

"My armor is damaged; the invisibility device is broken and controls of my ship don't respond" he replied without adding anything else

"Oh..." it was the only thing I could say; the questions were so many, but I didn't know nor where to begin nor whether he was willing to answer me; and just when finally I was going to ask him why he was here, he got up from the couch and headed for the door. Instinctively I reached the door before him, putting me right between him and the exit; he just stared at me, his face expressionless

"uh...where...where are you going? " I asked hesitantly

"I have to check the damage to my ship and arrange for its repair"

"Oh, I understand, but...as I told you, you shouldn't try too hard, that wound is very deep and it would be better to change your bandages..."

I watched as he advanced towards me and stepped back until I felt my back touching the door behind me; he bent slightly, a chill ran down my body

"Your attitude is unusual; Oomans generally try to escape or to face us; but you're not doing neither one nor the other thing and you seem to not be very afraid of me"

"Well...to be honest...wait a second, what do you mean by that?" I was finally able to ask him "Do you mean that you...the Yautja have already been here on Earth?"

"Our races met already many centuries ago, and some of you have proven themselves worthy opponents; so sometimes some of us come back here to hunt"

"H-hunt? What do you mean with..." I didn't have time to finish the sentence that Ne'veah grabbed me firmly by the shoulders, making me gasp; he lifted me off the floor and...and he just moved me to one side enough to be able to open the door and get out; I stood motionless for a moment, still feeling his grip on my body

"...H-hey! W-wait!" I followed him in the garden, straight down to the pool; he went inside and walked to his small spaceship, controlling the conditions; he was really a stubborn type. I decided to sit on edge of pool (repair it will cost me a patrimony) and stay to watch him doing his checks; now that I was able to ask him something I'd never wanted to stop, but it didn't seem appropriate to disturb him, and so I remained silent; I was terribly curious and continued to stare at him, watching him as he pressed buttons or dismounted and reassembled pieces of spacecraft; even my initial fears appeared to have slipped away...well, at least for the moment. After an indefinite time, Ne'veah finished his inspection and pulled out of the pool, but a sharp pain in the wound forced him to remain on his knees for a few more seconds; I saw his muscles twitch with pain

"I told you that you had to rest" I said, smiling, but immediately I hid that smile when he turned to me, once again his expression was unreadable; instead of getting up he remained on his knees, continuing to look at me

"The damage is considerable and it will take time to fix it, but I can't give precise information about it; in these conditions it's impossible to move the ship" he said no more, but his eyes remained focused on me, making me feel a little uneasy; it took me a few seconds more to understand what he wanted: he implicitly was telling me that he didn't know when he could leave my house and was asking my approval to remain; there was no need to repeat it twice

"Oh, you can stay here for as long as necessary"obviously send him away was out of the question, and, to say the truth, the idea of having him here didn't displease me so much; he just bow his head in thanks, I raised a hand "but now...can we think about your wounds?". We went back home and I took the necessary to treat him; he took off the old bandage and waited for me to give him the cloth with disinfectant, wiping it on the wound; when I asked him if he had some "alien" medicine he just told me he had lost his medical kit; I had already realized that he was a man of few words; I handed him the new bandages but it was evident that he had trouble bandage alone and so I offered to help him; just a few minutes later my cheeks were terribly red: it was virtually impossible to wrap the bandages around his chest without touching him and I couldn't look away from that body so muscular and massive; the fact that he simply held his arms crossed and was looking at me made things even worse

"So...your race has already entered into contact with humans..." I started to say to distract me "that's why you know our language?"

"In a sense; your language is extremely rudimentary and primitive, and therefore easy to learn"  
"What about the hunt..." I interrupted "forgive me, you need to rest"

"I have no time for this, I have to repair my ship as soon as possible"

"You can't move yet, your wound will reopen again, I think it's better if..." when I looked up and my eyes met his, I was no longer so sure I want to contradict him, but I took courage and finished the phrase "...if you try to sleep tonight...please?" his expression seemed curious, as if he was examining me again, then simply he nodded with head. I finished the bandage and walked towards the stairs, inviting him to follow me; my room was the only place where I could accommodate him, the bed wasn't as big as him, but it was definitely better than the sofa, just hoping that it would hold his weight; I let him enter the room and gave him directions on where were the lights and the bathroom; he looked around curious and I looked at him in my turn

"If you need something just ask " I said with a smile

"My debt toward you increases, Ooman"

"Don't worry, for me is not a problem" actually it was, but I will definitely find a solution "...good night" he just bow his head again, then I walked away. I collapsed on the sofa , exhausted and yet still excited for all that happened so far; I closed my eyes and tried to sleep, but I already knew that sleep would come only after a long time; a thousand thoughts crowded my head, and one in particular was driving me crazy, still echoing in my mind: an alien in my bed, _oh-my-god_ _there was_ _an alien_ _in my bed!_


	4. Breakfast

_4\. Breakfast_

I woke up very tired and exhausted, my body shivering with cold and it took me a while to understand that the sound I heard was the ringing of my cell phone, forgotten in the pocket of the dressing gown the night before; with a terrible effort I tried to respond, certainly from my voice I could be mistaken for a zombie

"Hellooooo..."

" _JESSICA! FINALLY YOU ANSWER ME!_ " The voice screamed so loud in my ear that I jumped and slid off the sofa and fell on the left arm; I avoided cursing loudly and I just moan with pain, trying to answer to that person; even though I was still half asleep, terror took possession of my body when I realized who was: it was Samantha, I forgot to warn her of my absence at work; I mumbled a greeting embarrassed and I was ready to apologize at least a billion times, but she cut me off first "Thank God you're okay! I was so worried! The police is still there? Are you hurt? Mark didn't give me all the details but..." she began with a torrent of words that I understood with great difficulty; Police? Wound? What the fuck was going on? Fortunately Samantha was an incredibly talkative type: Mark had told her that the thieves had entered my house and had made a big mess and for a couple of days I couldn't come to work; he must have been very convincing if Samantha was worried in that way; I tried to reassure her, I didn't like to lie, but this time it was necessary

"I'm fine, and the police will take care of the situation but, really, don't worry; I'm just a little tired because I haven't slept much, as you can imagine" I said quietly; I effectively slept a few hours

"Oh sure I understand, take a few days to recover from the bad experience; your colleague, Claire, was rather anxious, but I will tell her that all is well"

"Yes, thank you very mu..." I almost had a heart attack: the house door was open; Ne'veah...the memories of the night before came back to crowd my mind; I still couldn't believe it, it seemed like a dream...and yet it was real, I knew it was real

"J-Jessica? Something wrong?"

"N-no, I told you it's all right, I just remembered that I have to check something; see you soon, okay?" I said with some haste; I greeted quickly and, just closed the call, I jumped up and ran out into the garden, straight toward the pool. The ship was still there, reminding me again that it was real, that it was really happened, and I took a huge sigh of relief when I saw that there was also Ne'veah, intent on repairing one side of the ship; I didn't know why I was so alarmed, he certainly had no reason to go around; I approached him and like the last time I sat down at the edge of the pool; I still had so many questions for him but it wasn't the right time

"Good morning..." I tried to say; he turned to me, looking me straight in the eyes, and made a slight bow with his head, then return to his job, pressing a few keys on a piece of armor he wore on the forearm; well, that was something "um...it would be better if you stayed at home during the day, I understand that you have to repair your spaceship but..."

"What do you propose to do?" he asked

"...Could you work only at night? It would be much safer, and..." I was rendered speechless when he turned back to me, with an expression of disappointment

"It would be a waste of time; it's not an acceptable option" his tone wasn't hard, but I had the impression that he was scolding me; I was about to argue my reasons when a voice startled me

"Jessica? Jessica? Are you in the garden, dear?" the voice was a woman, an older woman to be accurate; shit, it was Mrs. Thompson, my neighbor. She was a nice old lady, and I wanted to avoid that she died of a heart attack on seeing an alien in my house; cautiously I walked to the gate and opened it just enough to get out and keep it half closed behind me; I made the best of my smiles, trying to appear calm

"Good morning, Mrs. Thompson"

"Good morning, dear, I don't know if I disturbed you, I thought you were talking to someone..."

"I'm a bit busy to tell the truth, so if it isn't urgent..." I tried to send her away gently

"I just came to ask you if you had some problem last night; you know, after the earthquake I saw a column of smoke coming from your home, even the other neighbors were alarmed"

"Well, uh...the pool, unfortunately I don't know how it happened, maybe some tube was clogged and my pool literally exploded"

"Oh dear! Fortunately, I see that nothing happened to you! Need help?" she took a few steps forward with the intention to open the gate, I stopped her taking her hand

"No, no, really I'm fine! Rather, if you can kindly refer to other neighbors that it's nothing serious..." Mrs. Thompson seemed very happy to help me and we greeted amicably

"Goodbye Mrs. Thompson"

"Goodbye my dear, I'll leave you to your boyfriend" I looked at her with wide eyes, she smiled "Oh come on, I am old but I understand certain things; a beautiful girl like you..."

"B-b-but really..." I was completely red, obviously my haste had been misunderstood; I had no time to tell her anything that she already had moved away. I went back in the garden and closed gate, returning from Ne'veah; I was surprised to see that he wasn't fixing his ship, but he looked at me curiously; I blushed thinking about what Mrs. Thomson had said, but maybe now I could take advantage of the situation to convince him

"This is why it's best not to be noticed, if someone sees you it would be big trouble, and this is much more likely to day; Can we…think about an alternative solution?" I hoped that he would listen to me; the seconds passed and he still didn't answer, but we kept looking at each other; those cold eyes on me...Ne'veah turned to the ship and removed a large piece of metal, then grabbed some wires and mechanical parts and pulled out of the pool; his size made me still uncomfortable, but at least I could see that the wound wasn't bleeding anymore, the bandages were still clean; he said nothing and walked with the metal parts inside the house; he…listened to me. I followed him and saw him as he put those pieces on the kitchen table, the question was spontaneous

"Would you like to eat something?" I didn't understand well why but I was very happy when he nodded and although it was later I prepared a hearty breakfast; I had no idea what he ate and spent a lot of time in the kitchen between eggs, bacon and pancakes without forgetting milk, fruit and biscuits; I brought everything to the table, he stopped to fix those pieces of metal and began to eat. I sat down in front of him and looked to understand his preferences and I noticed that he only ate a biscuit and a pancake and then leave them aside, evidently he didn't like sweets

"Aren't you eating?" he asked, distracting me from my thoughts

"oh" I took absently pancakes and milk, but also as I ate I couldn't stop looking at him; it seemed a day like any other, and in that moment he didn't behave too differently from an ordinary human being; his face...well, it wasn't so terrible when it was quiet, and I didn't displease those strange dread; those eyes...and then his body wasn't so...The milk went down the wrong way and I coughed violently; w-what...what kind of thoughts were these! I turned to avoid coughing on the table, and perhaps to hide my embarrassed expression; I stopped coughing, but when I turned back...Ne'veah was holding a large knife in his right hand and pointed straight at me. Instinctively I jumped up from the chair and stepped back scared; he looked at me with a puzzled expression, as he put the knife on my side of the table; he put a hand to his chest and bowed the head

"I have nothing better to reciprocate your hospitality, but accept it as a token of my gratitude"

I was extremely surprised by his gesture and hesitated a moment before turning back to sit; I observed that singular gift: it looked really sharp blade and the handle was made of bone, belonging to some kind of huge beast; I tried to take it and I realized it was quite heavy; I examined it a little longer, then handed it back to him

"Thank you, but there is no need to return the favor, and then I think it is more useful to you than me" I smiled; he stared at me a moment, my heart skipped a bit when he put his hand on mine and invited me to take back the knife; his palm was so big compared to mine, the skin thick but warm

"It is the most precious object I have at the moment; if it doesn't satisfy you enough I'll find something else to give you"

Maybe it was a practice of their culture, but I didn't want to deprive him of something so precious; but I couldn't refuse again, maybe there was something else I could ask him...

"How about…that?" I asked, pointing to the bone necklace around his neck; he shook his head

"It isn't enough; not a fair exchange"

"Hmmm..." I reflected a moment "then you could give me some information..." his eyes became alert

"What kind of information?"

"Tell me about yourself" I let out a smile looking at his surprised expression "you seem to know enough about human things, but I don't know anything about you; I want to know your planet, your culture, the hunt...tell me all you can; this is enough for me to return the favor; do you agree?" he thought for a moment, then nodded, and while I finished breakfast he started to tell me everything.

Two hours passed, maybe more, and yet we were still sitting at the kitchen table, talking about his world; the clan, the Elders, rituals...and the more he talked about it the more I was fascinated; I continued to ask questions, to expose my doubts and he patiently answered me; I should be frightened: prey, we humans were prey for them, they could destroy our planet with a snap of the fingers, and yet I wasn't scared; the sense of honor and respect was deeply rooted within him; they didn't kill innocent people, but only those who had the opportunity to face them; perhaps the way they act could seem cruel, but I certainly wasn't in the best position to judge. I lost sense of time and when we finished it was late afternoon; I was shocked, excited, and...I didn't want to get away from him; maybe I still was a little scared, but my desire to know him was stronger, I didn't know when he would go away...

"Why are you here? I mean here on Earth" I asked

"It wasn't my choice, my ship had problems and I fell at these coordinates" he said while started again to fix those pieces of the spaceship

"So it's a case" when he nodded I smiled "then I can say I'm very lucky"

Our eyes met...and in that moment the bell rang. I went to the video entryphone to see who it was, Mark? I opened the gate and waited in front of the house door

"Hi Jess! Is it all..." he stopped and looked at me, at that moment I remembered that I was still in my pajamas "...right?"

"Hello Mark, all is well, why are you here? You had to be at work" I was alarmed immediately, thinking about Samantha

"I know what you're thinking, but don't worry, everything is under control" Mark approached Ne'veah "hey big guy! How are we doing? Are you still going to kill me?"

"Only if you are you going to challenge me, small Ooman" at those words I had to force myself to hold back a laugh and covered my mouth with hand; Mark seemed to ignore him and turned to me

"If want to go out in your pajamas is fine for me" said amused

"Go out...where?" I stared at him puzzled

"We had a date, right?"

" _I don't remember that it was set for today_ " I said altered; Mark replied with a shrug of the shoulders and sat down on the sofa, letting me know that he wasn't going to leave without me. I tried to keep control and went to prepare myself reluctantly, by washing and choosing a casual outfit, just not let him come up with strange ideas; I went back downstairs and we were ready to go out

"Uh, I guess you'll be fine even alone" I said to Ne'veah, he just nodded "Well...see you later..." Mark and I left the house and went to drink this damn coffee; but my thoughts were still directed to my home, to my kitchen...towards those eyes of ice came so suddenly in my life.

* * *

Hi to everyone! Sorry if for the moment there are no epic battles or anything like that, and the story is going a little slow but I need the time to develop the plot; this is also a love story :) But I hope that you continue to give me your support and help me figure out what you like and what not :) And now a question for you: if one Yautja had a debt to you, what would you ask him in return? :)


	5. Sexual attraction

Maybe I am a little repetitive, but each person who follows or reviews my story deserves my thanks :) because knowing that there is someone who reads what I write is a joy for me. And then continue to support me, and enjoy this new chapter!

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 _5\. Sexual attraction_

The days passed and became weeks. I couldn't miss work for so much time and so after two days I had to go back to my duties; initially I was a bit worried to the idea of missing from home for too long, but fortunately, during this improbable coexistence, Ne'veah and I began to develop our daily rhythm: usually when I woke up (the sofa was now my permanent bed), he was already intent on repairing some pieces of his ship; I cooked breakfast for both, we ate together and then I got ready to go to work; during my absence, Ne'veah followed my advice to stay at home and not go out except to take other metal parts to adjust; generally I let the meat (a lot of meat) in the refrigerator if he was hungry, and I also found out that he didn't need to eat every day; as soon as I got home, I prepared dinner, and after dinner I sat on edge of pool and we used to chat before I went to sleep while he repaired the damages most significant; arguments were the most varied, from his world to some human customs, or I was trying desperately to understand the internal structure of the ship but without success; sometimes I also had the opportunity to portray him in my sketchbook and he didn't seem too bothered of this. It hadn't been so easy to find the right balance, neither being able to communicate, since he was a silent type; but now he seemed to have got used to my presence and listened with interest to my questions or my speeches.

At this point I would say that things were finally going in the right direction, but unfortunately I was far from finding a solution to all my problems. As the days passed, in fact, Mark had become insistent; our first date had been a nightmare for me: it was a full-blown courtship and although I continued to refuse with courtesy his advances he didn't seem to concede defeat; on the contrary, it seemed that he had taken that one occasion where we were together as a personal victory and this had prompted him to ask me to go out more frequently; and unfortunately, sometimes I was forced to accept, not because I really wanted to, but if I didn't do this, there was a probability that he decided to come to my house and I didn't want in any way that he met Ne'veah, or I risked to have his death on my conscience; it was enough to listen to a couple of conversations to understand that Mark couldn't stand him, and although he knew how dangerous it was, he had continued to provoke him every time. I didn't like at all his behavior, and even if I couldn't consider him a stalker because he tried to be nice, sooner or later I would lose patience; I increasingly realized that I had to speak to him and put an end to this story.

In addition, it wasn't really a good time to provoke Ne'veah; he seemed particularly nervous in recent times, his mandibles clicked more than usual; the repair of his ship had suffered a sharp slowdown for the lack of some spare parts; I helped as I could, trying to find some human materials that could be good substitutes, but it was frustrating. Yeah, frustrating, because in addition to all this and the work, there was also another big, huge, gigantic problem: I liked Ne'veah. To be honest, I didn't know how to understand this affirmation; in what sense I liked him? As a person? As alien? Maybe I felt affection for him just because it was a bit of time we were alone together at my house, but I wasn't quite sure. Anyway, when I was able to admit to myself this truth (and I also made some effort to do that) I could no longer stay quiet; how I would react when he would go away? Because sooner or later he would leave and perhaps we would never see each other again; this idea saddened me, but why? In what sense I was sad? I wanted to understand my feelings, to find a solution, but what could I do?

" _Sex_ "

Claire's voice brought me back to reality abruptly, in the hallway, in front of the vending machines and nearly I didn't spilled coffee from my hand; maybe I didn't hear well

"W-what did you say?" I asked

"I simply said you have an urgent need for sex, Jessica" she repeated as if she were saying the most normal thing of this world; she had always been quite explicit, but that affirmation made me blush to the roots of one's hair

"A-and why you think so?"

"You're strange lately; as long as it is work you are doing it always better, but otherwise you're always distracted, apathetic, you don't listen to anyone except Samantha because she's your boss, and each time it seems that you can't wait to go home" she looked straight into my eyes

"W-well, I can do many other things besides sex to relax the nerves..."

"I don't understand, I just can't understand you..." before I could ask for explanations, Claire grabbed me by the arm and led me into the bathroom, closing the door. She turned towards me

"Listen, I know you have every right to hold these things for you, but can't you tell me absolutely nothing? Try to understand me, I'm curious..."

"...Huh?" I looked dazed; she huffed impatiently

" _How is he? Is he gentle? Treats you well? Why didn't you still have sex with him?_ "

I looked at her wide-eyed

"How...how did you know that...?" I couldn't believe that she understood how I felt

"Hey I am a woman, and a woman can figure out what you think" she said with a smile

"Well, if you really want to know something...yes, he is gentle in his way, and initially I was a little intimidated...but I like to talk with him, I find it very interesting and..." more I talked, the more I realized of the possible reasons why I liked Ne'veah; and as I continued to talk, I thought of him and my cheeks turned red; maybe I was completely crazy "...and then those eyes of ice..." when my eyes crossed with that of Claire she seemed very surprised, even shocked; I was going to ask her if there was any problem, but it was she who interrupt me

"You're not talking about Mark, he doesn't have blue eyes"

"Oh, I'm sorry, there must have been a misunderstanding" I smiled but she didn't seem at all pleased

"Let me understand well: you go out with Mark but you like another one? Although you know that I like Mark?"

"! Claire wait, don't jump to conclusions" but how could I explain to her that I went out with Mark only because I was forced? Simple, I couldn't do it, because she didn't give me even the time to try to clarify that she opened the bathroom door and left without saying a word. I wanted to stop her, I was sorry to have offended her, but then I thought that by now we were too grown up to act like two girls struggling with first loves; if she wanted talk about it calmly, she knew where to find me. I decided to eat a sandwich sitting at my desk, away from the bustle of the canteen, and, as usual, as soon as I finished the job I took my things and I ran back to home. I entered the gate and walked through the garden, but I stopped when I saw that Ne'veah was out to work near the ship; I greeted him and sat on the edge of the pool, dinner could wait...

"...How do Yautja males courting a girl?" he paused to look at me; obviously it was a question a little strange and unexpected, but he replied

"As I explained, hunting allows us to prove our worth, collecting the heads of other species; to impress a female you need to offer her a trophy, and if she sees this as an adequate gift then the male can mate with her"

"And if the female wants to court the male?"

"this may be quite unusual; during the fertile period, a female always has the possibility to find a male who wants to mate with her to continue his descent; only the huntresses may offer a trophy to the male, but also this is a rare case"

"...Mate...it's just that? There are no feelings like love and affection?"

"I've heard of this kind of human emotions, but they are difficult to understand for our species"

I snorted in frustration; I had to surrender to the fact that no matter how much, why or in what way I was attracted to him, it was something that couldn't work; I rubbed my temples and closed my eyes, better stop now and forget about it...

"You seem very nervous, _Jessica_ ; what troubles you?"

Ne'veah rarely pronounced my name, but when he did I liked how it sounded; he was looking at me, waiting for an answer; I returned his gaze, those eyes...

"...You don't help me in this way, you know?" I said, conscious that he couldn't understand that statement; I felt a dire need to touch him, to have some comfort, I didn't even remember the last time someone had embraced me and right now no one could come here, not even my mother; I began to feel a bit alone, the stress was making me collapse...

Ne'veah came out of the pool and I got to my feet, it was time to make dinner; I didn't have even time to take two steps toward the door that he covered my eyes with one hand and pulled me back, a gesture so sudden that my body gasped with fright; he let me step back until I felt my back and my head against him, and this embarrassed me a little

"Ne'veah what..."

"Don't talk, don't think, breathe deeply and concentrate only on the rhythm of your breath"

I started a little hesitant to do what he had said; I took deep breaths and tried to ignore other sounds around me; slowly the world began to disappear and the only things I paid attention were my lungs pumping air and the steady beat of my heart; before I knew it, my mind was already free from any thought, and my muscles were relaxed; I remained in that position for a few more minutes, until Ne'veah removed his hand from my eyes. I felt unusually raised; I turned to him

"... _Thank you_ " I said that word as if he had just saved my life; he said nothing, just touching my shoulder before returning to his work. I entered the house very happy; it was the first time ever that we were so close, and I realized that he didn't scare me anymore, neither his size nor his claws; of course, I still hadn't solved the problem of my infatuation with him, but I preferred to enjoy the moment rather than overload my mind with stressful thoughts. I unbuttoned my shirt a little to be more comfortable and prepared a hearty dinner of meat and salad; I was arranging plates and cutlery when the doorbell rang. Mark greeted me from the video entryphone, smiling; maybe it wasn't the right time to put things clear once and for all, but it sure would be good for my nerves; so I opened the gate and waited at the front door, he came towards me

"Hello Mark, I think we have to sp..."

"Claire came to me, saying that you were betraying me or something like that" he said with a half smile "so I have come in person to put things clear"

"Oh, I totally agr..."

Mark grabbed my arm, pulled me to himself and pressed firmly his lips on mine, forcing me to back away inside the house and closing the door behind him.


	6. Threats

Finally, the site works again! First there were problems with the views, then it stopped working altogether! I hope you enjoy this chapter :) and thanks in advance for any review!

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 _6\. Threats_

Mark let me go, I walked away from him. I was shocked to say the least...and disgusted for what he had just done; my breath quickened while anger took control

"W-what... _ **what the hell** **were you thinking** **Mark** **!**_ " I shouted as I cleaned my mouth with the hand; this went far beyond the simple courtship; he was unimpressed, but when he began to speak his voice was altered

"Maybe this way I can make you come to your senses, Jess" he pointed to the door "because, unlike _that thing_ you have in your garden, _I'm human_ " I looked at him in disbelief at those words, but he didn't give me time to reply and continued "When Claire came to talk to me I was about to have a heart attack; leaving aside the stupid question of betrayal, I am convinced that you aren't the type of woman who attends most men at once and I'm sure that you're not actually dating someone else; and the only guy, from what I remember, who has ice-blue eyes is our dear alien outside. Do you have any idea how I felt? I tried to be gentle, to find a way know each other better, I really wanted to be the right person for you, and then what I discovered? That everything I did was useless because of that... **that**..." Mark was trying to control himself; it was clear that he felt hurt, humiliated and then also really angry, but now it was my turn to speak

"I know that you tried, I know very well, but it just didn't work and I seem also I told you too many times, but you didn't listen me, and I would ask you to leave Ne'veah out of this, it isn't his fault"

"No, Jess, he is still involved in all this; every time we've been together...have you ever tried on really consider me as a possible boyfriend? I don't believe; but at least I tried! I brought you out to dinner, we went to have a coffee, we talked about our interests and I tried to understand your preferences...what did he done for you? Apart from wrecking your pool"

"Mark, look, the question is very simple: you're not my type, I seriously think you're a nice guy and funny, but I can't have feelings of love or affection on command, simply we can't be together because our ways of doing things are very different, so believe me when I say that Ne'veah didn't affect in any way my decision"

"I wonder why you haven't spoken to me before all this"

"Tell you about it before? Have you ever really listened to me? How many times have I said no and you continued undeterred to insist? You would react in the same way you're doing now knowing that I liked Ne'veah..." I wanted to say more, but the explicit admission of my feelings set me particularly uncomfortable; Mark looked more nervous than ever, he turned a moment to the door then back at me

"Please, give me another chance; when he will be gone, maybe you could reconsider the matter; you know that his stay is only temporary" his words saddened me, thinking that I wouldn't have seen more Ne'veah, but my decision was adamant, I didn't feel anything for him even before all this happened and I didn't think that things would have changed that much after; I preferred to avoid giving him false hopes, and so I shook my head

"I'm sorry, but I don't think that would work in any case" I passed him and went to open the door; it was never easy to accept a rejection like that, and even if I was the cause of his pain I was still sorry for him, so I tried to be conciliatory "I can imagine that you are terribly angry, maybe it's better if you go home and get some rest" I tried to say the words so that didn't result simply as an invitation to leave, I wanted to let him know that I wasn't hostile towards him. Mark looked at me a moment, before approaching me and leave the house, and was about to put one foot in the garden when he stopped, looking straight forward

"Mark?" I looked at him puzzled; he stood in that position for a few more seconds, and then...suddenly grabbed the door and closed it abruptly. I was surprised for his reaction, but I hadn't the chance to ask for an explanation that he shouted at me

"I can't stand to leave you in the hands of that _monster_!" he seemed desperate, and maybe really worried about me...but I didn't care anymore; whatever my intention to be kind vanished in the identical moment when he said these words; now I was really pissed off

" _Take back what you said, immediately_ "

"See? You're continuing to defend him! Why?! He didn't do anything for you! The idea that you and he can...I..." to be honest I was surprised too; defend Ne'veah was one thing, but getting angry in this way for him was different; was it really just a passing infatuation? O-or maybe I...

"Please, Jessica, _that being_ don't..." ok, infatuation or not, I was tired of listen to him

"Mark I don't give a _fuck_ about what you think, stop insulting him in front of me and get out" I looked at him furious. He held my gaze, and something changed in him; his expression became extremely serious

"You really care a lot about him...let's see what you are willing to do to save him"

Mark grabbed me firmly by the hair and tried to kiss me again; that gesture surprised and scared me at the same time, but this time I managed to stop him, placing one arm between me and his face, and as I tried to free myself from his grip I tried to give him a slap; Mark stopped the shot and grabbed my shirt, pulling strongly; I struggled with all my strength and I was able to dismiss him with a shove; shirt buttons were broken, revealing my bra; I tried to cover myself as I could, now I began to be afraid; he stood in front of the door to prevent me from going out

" **Mark,** **get out!** " I said desperately, backing away as much as possible, but of course he didn't listen to me and tried to grab me again, I continued to run, as panic took possession of me and tears were pressing to get out; I couldn't believe what was happening. I thought to run upstairs and lock me in my room, then from there I could open the window and call Ne'veah for help; so I ran to the stairs, but he was too quick and grabbed my arm, then throwing me to the ground and trying to block me; I began to scream with all the breath in my throat, hoping to be heard; Mark covered my mouth with one hand, his grip was so strong that I couldn't even move the head; he brought his face close to mine

" _From now on you will do well to be nice to me, or I might even decide to call someone to catch your alien_ "

Tears streamed down my face and breathed with difficulty; I was terrified but I stopped anyway to wriggle, I couldn't let this happen...and in any case I didn't have the strength to break free from his grasp. My body was shaking violently with sobs; I wanted to beg him, to get him to let me go, but he was still holding his hand over my mouth while the other hand tore my shirt and tried to take it off. I closed my eyes; _I was so scared, so scared_...

A sudden sound of breaking glass made me open my eyes instantly and quickly moved my gaze from one point to another of my vision; Mark had just enough time to look up...before Ne'veah grabbed him by the neck and lifted him off the ground with the force of one arm; his furious roar filled the room, as he threw Mark against the wall as if he were a rag doll. My body trembled convulsively and I hadn't even the strength to sit up; I was only able to roll to one side and helplessly watch the scene, as if I was a mere spectator. Ne'veah approached Mark, who meanwhile was crawling on the floor in a desperate attempt to get away; he was terrified

" _Face me, coward_!" roared Ne'veah, overhanging his opponent with his imposing mass and standing still in front of him, ready to attack; in response, Mark huddled against the wall

"P-please, _spare me!_ " but with those words Ne'veah seemed rage even more, and growling reached Mark in a few steps, grabbed him by the shirt and hit him violently to the face; the only thing I saw was a gush of blood that spurted on the floor. Ne'veah grabbed Mark again by the neck and forced him to his knees; I saw two long blades out from his left forearm, eager to get his head; but even if I was still pissed with him and the bastard deserved it, I couldn't allow that

"N-Ne'veah... _Ne'veah stop please_!" I shouted with the last strengths I had left; he turned to face me, I didn't know if he would have listened to me but I stared at him pleadingly and shook my head; Ne'veah looked back at Mark, then he lifted him at least half a meter from the floor, growling menacingly  
" _Go away and don't come back, if you will create other problems I will come to reclaim your head as a trophy, no matter where you hide, I will find you, **is that clear?**_ " and having said that, he threw him back to the ground, in the direction of the door. Mark got to his feet with difficulty, frightened and bleeding, and without saying a word staggered out of my house...definitely coming out from my life.

I tried again to get up, but even if it was all over my body continued to tremble and tears begging to go out, eager to vent all the pain and fear I felt at that moment; and while my arms were trying at best to support my weight, two hands grabbed me by the hips and lifted me easily, as if I was as light as a feather, supporting me to prevent me from fall again. Ne'veah made me turn to him and offered his arms to help me stand up; he didn't speak, at the end there was nothing to say, and yet I had the extreme need for him to say something, anything that would give me a bit of comfort...I grabbed his arms with all my strength, and then I threw myself literally against him and hugged him, starting to cry; I didn't care if I was half-naked or which reaction he could have had, I was so scared...I need him terribly. The seconds passed and he stood still for a while, until he dragged me slowly with him near the sofa; I felt something falling on my shoulders: it was the blanket that I used for the night; my sobs diminished when he wrapped me in the blanket and picked me up bridal style; my eyes, still filled with tears, met with his

"...you need to rest" it was the only thing he said, and went up the stairs directly in my bedroom, leaving the lights off. With great delicacy, Ne'veah made me lie on the bed; I was ready to beg him not to leave me alone, but against all expectations I saw the outline of his figure lie down on my side; I felt his arms around my body, pulling me to himself so much that my ear rested against his chest; the fear for what happened was still strong, but I couldn't prevent my cheeks blush. And then a sound reverberated in his chest; it was very weak at the beginning, but as the seconds passed it became louder; it seemed like the purring of a cat...it was so…relaxing...my body began to calm down, and with that sound in my mind I fell asleep.


	7. Desire

Hi guys! Wow there are so many followers! I don't know how to thank you! Unfortunately I don't know if from now on I can continue to write with a certain regularity, because soon I will start an internship, but I will do my best :) I hope you enjoy the chapter!

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 _7\. Desire_

The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the ceiling of my room, and my first thought was: fuck...I wouldn't have been able to sleep better. I didn't feel neither tired nor exhausted, my body was relaxed and well rested; I sat up and stretched; it was really a great feeling and it was amazing that I felt that good in spite of what had happened the night before...and yet it seemed already a memory so far...Ne'veah, it had been Ne'veah with that sound to make me fall asleep; obviously I didn't find him still in bed, probably he was already at work on the ship. He had saved me...he was so strong...I looked at the clock and saw that it was still early enough, I had plenty of time to call Samantha and tell her that I wouldn't be coming to work; maybe she would have reproached me, but after what I had suffered it was the minor concern. I was still in bra and with the rest of my work clothes, so I went to the bathroom to wash my face and change me with something more comfortable.

No matter how the water was cold, my body continued to burn of energy, excitement, while my mind put aside the bad memories and continued to bring out the sensations of the night: my face against his warm chest, the rhythm of his heart and his breathing... _fuck_...maybe I needed ice to quench my hot spirits! I opened the drawer to take a pair of jeans and a T-shirt; I had kept in the top drawer the necklace Ne'veah had given me and at first I thought to wear it, but in the end I changed my mind; I tied my hair and went downstairs; almost I stumbled when I saw Ne'veah sitting at the kitchen table with my laptop in front of him. Honestly I wasn't surprised that he knew to use it, their technology was at least a hundred times more evolved than ours; I walked over and noticed that some wires were connected from the PC directly to the device to his left arm; only when I got even closer, I realized another particular: although he was always shirtless, usually he wore some pieces of his armor on his arms and legs; but now, except for that device and his loincloth, he wasn't wearing anything else; I blushed slightly, well...the morning was going always better! When he turned to me, I greeted him with the best of my smiles

"Good morning" I was about to ask him what he was doing when he rose from the chair, pulling the wires from the computer, and came towards me, holding up a hand; I was speechless when he put his hand on my head and gently stroked it, asking me

"How do you feel?"

"!...err, I'm fine; what are you doing?" I asked, still marveling by his behavior

"Research" he sat down again; I sat beside him and looked at the computer screen; what I saw left me a little surprise: there were articles about the behavior and human psychology, some spoke of feelings or reactions to particular situations, and even articles on "how to comfort a friend"; I looked at him with a questioning look

"I don't know the human reactions in their environment, the situation of the previous night took me by surprise, I found it necessary to collect and archive some information" probably he was referring to the way I acted; I touched my head, thinking that perhaps he had read somewhere that this gesture could make me feel better

"Would you like something to eat?" I asked, he nodded without looking away from the screen and accumulating more data. I prepared pancakes, along with bacon and eggs, and while they were cooking I kept looking Ne'veah; damn...

"Thank you for what you did" I said "apparently now I'm indebted to you"

"You saved my life and hosted in your home, it was my duty to help" but his tone quickly became a growl; I stared at him in alarm, he began to speak "in our species the females know how to defend themselves; although usually it's natural for the males develop a protective instinct towards our temporary mate and our children, a female can be strong enough to kill a warrior; but even if they were weak, no male would dare to force her to mate, it would be considered an extremely dishonorable act and punishable by death" Ne'veah growled again before continuing "the human constitution is extremely fragile, and if the human female isn't trained to fight, I doubt that she can overpower a male, and take advantage of something like this to force the coupling is just _disgusting_ "

I looked at his mandibles clicked frantically; aww, he was so _cute_!

"I think Mark would be considered very lucky to still be alive, thanks for listening to me"

"I refuse to have the head of a coward as a trophy, not even one of our children would have begged to that way of facing death, that Ooman was really a suckling" that statement made me smile. Breakfast was ready and we began to eat in silence; I was reflecting on what he had told me and I still had some questions for him, but I was afraid to hear the answers...maybe it was better to start with something less challenging

"That sound you made for make me fall asleep..." he looked at me and purred "exactly, that...why did you..."

"It was the only solution that came to mind to calm you down and it worked, even if..." I was surprised when I saw his expression, it was the first time I saw him smile "...we generally use that sound to calm infants when they cry or to court a female" his mandibles clicked frantically, he seemed really amused to see my expression of surprise and embarrassment; it passed a few minutes of embarrassing silence (for me of course) before I started to ask

"What do you mean by temporary mate?"

"From what I remember, you Oomans prefer to choose just one partner for the rest of your existence; for us it isn't so, is not excluded that could happen, but we prefer to have several mates with which to have children so as to extend our lineage"

I was about to ask him if this conduct might cause jealousy or anger, but I changed my mind; they weren't human, they didn't prove such feelings; in any case his response wasn't in my favor; why I continued to insist! It couldn't work between us in any way! Yet I continued to ask questions, to torture me, hoping to find that answer that would have given me a faint possibility, or would have denied any other occasion; it was the moment of truth

"So...you've had several mates and many children" his expression hardened, I immediately wondered if I had made the wrong question

"I'm still a young hunter, until now I have had only one mate"

"Oh" come on, now or never "well, I guess now she'll be waiting for you, or maybe your sons..."  
"She died before we could have one"

The fork fell from my hand; I looked Ne'veah straight into his eyes, I was shocked to say the least  
"I-I...I'm sorry, I didn't want..." if I wanted an answer I had found it, but it wasn't what I expected; and in any case I realized that it was useless: probably even though he had told me that he had a harem of females my feelings for him wouldn't be changed; it was so absurd...be in love with an alien...His hand stroked again my head and interrupted my thoughts; now his expression seemed calmer

"Our race is accustomed to dealing with death every day, looking for bigger and bigger challenges; the risk of dying during the hunt is always high, and not necessarily only the males remain involved in disputes or fights; so when one of us dies we aren't particularly upset, but we think that our companion has fought with honor and Paya will take his soul" he bit into the last piece of meat and stood up, heading for the door. Instinctively I ran after him and I touched his arm, drawing his attention; actually I didn't know what to tell him, nor if it was the right time to do it, after what he had told me; but I didn't want it to end here, I didn't want to live with the regret of having let him go without saying anything; but...I was so nervous...

"Ne'veah...I-I..." I looked down embarrassed, unable to continue...continue what? Really I was going to tell him what I was thinking? I...felt a strange sensation on my face; Ne'veah patted my cheek just a second, then quickly withdrew his hand; at first I thought that he had read somewhere that the gesture was comforting, but when I looked up I was a little perplexed: his expression looked surprised, as if his touch wasn't intentional; he looked at his hand just a second

"...I go fix my ship" and left the house without another word.

The next few days were a living hell; the work was always the same, but to me it seemed ten times worse; after a couple of days Claire came back to apologize to me for her behavior and had also reported that Mark had made demanded to move to another office; but this certainly didn't improve my mood. I was nervous, agitated, restless; my thought was just one: _I wanted him_ _,_ _I wanted him_ _,_ _I_ _wanted him_...I was seriously worried; Ne'veah and I didn't know for a long time, and yet I had never felt a feeling so strong towards someone, both emotional...and physical; yes, I wanted him also physically; but if one side my heart was telling me to at least try to confess my feelings before it's too late, my head was screaming "it can't work, forget it, you'd get only a terrible disappointment"; and then I felt like shit thinking that while I mulled over all this, he had lost a mate; but if he went away...if he didn't return...only to that thought I felt tears in my eyes

"Jessica? Are...are you ok?" Claire looked at me worried, then looked at my lunch "lately you're not eating a lot...if...if I tell you..." since we started talking again, Claire was afraid to say something that would offend me; I had already realized that she didn't want to make other mistakes  
"You know, maybe you were right Claire" I said with a half smile "I really need sex" unfortunately I couldn't tell her that the only person I wanted was an alien from another world.

I went home quite tired and with a compelling desire to sleep; when he saw me, Ne'veah came out of the pool and bowed his head to greet me; we went inside and very slowly I began to prepare dinner, as he sat at the kitchen table; I just started taking the meat from the fridge when I heard his voice  
"I have good news, the repair of the ship is almost finished; soon, no later than one week, I should be able to leave"

The world stopped spinning in that instant; I knew this day would come, but for me it was still too early; there was no time, _there was no time_...I had to choose now; my heart quickened terribly the beats, while I closed the fridge and slowly turned toward him

"We need to talk" I said, the classic phrase that signaled a serious talk, but it was the only thing that occurred to me to begin; he looked at me puzzled, it was impossible for me to hide my nervousness "Ne'veah...you taught me a lot about your culture, and how different it is from the human one... " I started say, approaching him; and the closer I got, the more my body was burning with excitement "in particular, you made me realize that the emotions we feel aren't the same; I...I tried in every way to live with this, but I didn't succeed" I put my hand on his and that contact caused me a thrill "you probably will not be able to understand what I'm about to tell you but..." but I remembered what he had told me, on their way to mate; even if he refused my feelings...

"Ne'veah..."

...nothing could prevent me to propose myself as a mate

"I lov..."

I hadn't the time to finish the sentence; Ne'veah rose abruptly, and the chair toppled to the ground with a loud thud, scaring me; he broke the contact between us and stepped back

" _Stay away from me_ "

...What?


	8. Chocolate

_8\. Chocolate_

Only one meter separated Ne'veah and me, but I didn't dare to approach, his expression was very tense; those words had hit me in the chest like a knife, literally, because I was missing the air in the lungs; I didn't understand the reasons for his reaction, after all I hadn't yet said anything; my mind was crowded with a thousand thoughts, trying to find my possible mistake: I thought I wasn't doing anything wrong by touching his hand but perhaps from his point of view was something offensive; perhaps he had sensed my intentions and this was his way of refusing, perhaps... I realized I didn't know his world as I wanted, and that I hadn't probably made the wisest choice to confide in my sentiments; I felt that I liked Ne'veah seriously, that I wanted him, but the time we spent together was really too short and he was still a mystery to me; but at least I wanted to tell him that I loved him, after all he was going to leave...maybe forever...I tried to keep my voice calm, but inside me the concern and anxiety were taking over, I didn't want to ruin everything...held back the tears, it wasn't yet time to cry

"Ne'veah, if I offended you in some way I'm sorry; really, I didn't want get you some..."

"...your smell" he said, shaking his head as if something was bothering him; I didn't understand those words and looked at him questioningly, he hesitated for a moment before continuing "you're aroused, I can feel it"

In that moment I went into panic: I felt my cheeks burn with embarrassment and an immediate desire to hide in shame; but most of all this I was terrified that he had misunderstood my intentions; it was true, I was attracted to him physically, it was a perfectly normal thing and I liked when he stroked my head or purred; but that didn't mean I had to have sex with him at any moment! Sure, I thought about this, I desired it, but I was even old enough to restrain these instincts and take things one step at a time, how could I know that he had the ability to sense my excitement! Instinctively I stepped back a few paces, hoping that this would put both at ease; in any case, I still wanted to talk to him, I felt compelled to give explanations; he seemed to relax a bit and I decided to take advantage of those few seconds of silence to tell him something, but Ne'veah spoke first

"Our body reacts instinctively when we feel a fertile female nearby; provokes in us the instinct to mate" the fact of having unleashed in him a reaction pleased me, but I pushed that thought immediately, it was stupid to be happy with such a thing, but at least I realized one thing: apparently when their women were fertile they emitted a scent that attracted males; their technology and their way of thinking was more evolved than humans, but in their culture there were also those aspects that we could consider "primitives"; it was unusual, but fascinating at the same time; in any case, when I spoke I was terribly embarrassed

"...It has bothered you so much?"

"We are able to control us, but next time it would be better avoid such close contact" he said simply; talk about these things with him made me a little uncomfortable, but maybe I could find a way to give an explanation

"...You know, um, we human women don't have a particular smell when we are fertile, but only when...well, when we are attracted to a male, and our race doesn't have a sense of smell so developed, so males don't even aware of our excitement"

"? And how do you understand when is the right time to mate?"

"For us it's different, generally for choosing a partner, we are driven by love and desire, and not by the instinct reproduction" I looked at him as he reflected on what I had just said; and from his expression I knew that he had understood what I was going to tell him; he stared at me surprised

"You have chosen me as your mate"

Responding to that statement seemed to me the most difficult challenge of my life; I wanted to find the right words to let him know how I felt, but it wasn't easy even if I had to try; I took a deep breath, determined not to stop

"I like you, Ne'veah, for who you are; to tell the truth I wasn't sure to tell you immediately, I wanted...I wanted to know you better, have the time to understand you and learn more about you and your culture; but when you told me you were about to leave I didn't think rationally, I was afraid...the thought that I wouldn't have seen you again and I had very little time to be with you pushed me to behave in a way that I didn't want; probably this is the reason that…brought my body to speed things up; I don't deny that I am attracted to you physically, but believe me...I like the way you act and what you think, my…feelings for you are very strong...I know that probably for you it's difficult to understand..." damn; the more I talked, the more it was difficult to breathe; throat ached terribly, but I had to finish this speech "...I don't ask to become my mate, or choose me as your next partner, but...right now I wouldn't want to see you go away so soon, I want you to stay here with me a little bit more, just a bit more…" at last I told him; this was what I needed: time; I waited for his reaction, but I couldn't look into his eyes, I felt that I was reaching the limit, the tension became unbearable. Ne'veah spent a few more seconds before respond to my words; to my surprise he approached me and placed both hands on my shoulders, gently; I looked up and our eyes met

"I appreciate your sincerity, although I admit I don't fully understand your feelings; if the circumstances had been different I would have considered your proposal" those words surprised me but I held my breath, unfortunately I sensed what was coming next "but I can't stay, I have already created a lot of problems, and still others will come if I won't go away; my race avoids lying, so I can't assure you that I will return, but I swear that at least I will try, I will not deny this to the person who saved me" he patted my shoulders before let me go; ok, ok...Jessica, you mustn't collapse now, hold back yourself...I took a deep breath and nodded slowly

"Thanks Ne'veah...now, you know, I am very tired..." I said, moving away from him with a half smile "I'd better go to sleep, tomorrow I expect a terrible day at work" I pretended a yawn "see you tomorrow ok? Do you mind if I use my room? You know..." he nodded and continued to look at me as I walked into my room; it was clear that my behavior was strange, but he probably didn't understand why.

I climbed the stairs slowly, and always quietly closed the door behind me; I stepped in total darkness and sat down on the bed, turning on the bedside light; I collapsed at the precise moment when I unbuttoned the top button of shirt; copious tears came down my cheeks, preventing me even to see, and my chest began to ache so hard to take my breath away; I immediately covered my mouth with one hand to hold the sobbing, I felt as if someone had ripped out my heart with his bare hands. I knew it; I knew that I would react in this way if he refused, it was a perfectly normal reaction...but no matter how I tried to control myself; _fuck_ , it hurt, _it really hurt_! The pain was unspeakable, like a violent punch in the stomach; I vented my despair as I could, still crying so much to make me come the headache; only when the sobs stopped, but not the tears, I found the strength to take my clothes off, put on pajamas and go to sleep. I sank my head in the pillow, wanting only to sleep...

I awoke with a start when I heard the sound of the alarm clock; my first instinct was to destroy the cell phone, but I restrained myself; it made no sense to be so angry, but I couldn't avoid being a very bad mood; I got up from the bed rubbing my face; eyes were aching and my throat was dry; I cried so much that not even remember if I had stopped before falling asleep; I came out of my room and slowly walked to the bathroom, turned on the light and looked in the mirror

"Oh great..." I should imagine it, my eyes were so red that I could be mistaken for a drug addict; I didn't want to show me in these conditions, so I got ready to go to work and put on sunglasses; it was a bit hard to see inside the house, but better to avoid the risk of being seen with this terrible face; I went downstairs to prepare breakfast, and I preferred not to wait Ne'veah, I didn't feel right to speak too much with him today. I ate quickly and left the house; as I imagined he was repairing his ship, I took courage and I greeted him

"Good morning, breakfast is ready; I'm going to work, today I am a bit of a hurry" when he looked back at me, my heart ached

"...How do you feel?" he asked; that question caught me a little by surprise, I wouldn't have expected from him; I wanted to tell him how I really felt, but basically what I would have solved? It wouldn't have changed anything, or perhaps would only make things worse; I smiled

"I'm fine"

I greeted him and went to work, and once there, I tried to keep my mind busy as much as possible; if I thought even a second to Ne'veah, I would have collapsed again; even if I no longer had even the strength to cry...

"Here" Claire put over my desk a giant cup of hot chocolate, just above the documents I was working; surprised, I raised it up immediately, looking at her upset, but in response she looked at me with an expression so sad that I couldn't get angry

"...thank you" I said

"You know, I also kept the sunglasses at the office a few times" she said, pointing to the glasses I was wearing "I found that a cup of hot chocolate is much sweeter than that asshole that made me cry" I couldn't hold a sincere smile; but if Ne'veah were really an asshole, I wouldn't be reduced in this state; I sighed heavily, with the urgent desire to get back to work.

When I left the office I didn't really want to go home; I might have regretted having wasted a day without being next to him, but I needed to stay a little alone with my thoughts, I had to deal with it in my own way; and after all Ne'veah wasn't in danger of dying of hunger; I decided to reward myself and eat at a nice restaurant not far from here, so I got into the car and headed slowly toward my destination. Finding parking was incredibly easy, I got out and walked to the local; I had just laid a hand on the door when I heard a voice calling me

"Jessica?"

I turned, and I froze instantly: Mark.


	9. Destruction

Hi to everyone! Tomorrow I'll start the Internship, wish me good luck :) Thanks as always for your support, and special thanks to _Cityhunterluv_ **,** my friend, and to Y _orkmanic88_ and Y _autja Paya,_ for their support in each chapter! I hope you enjoy!

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 _9\. Destruction_

Florida is a vast country, where millions of people live; some remain in the same place, others travel continuously... **but** **the only** **dickhead** **that** **I wouldn't have** **wanted** **to see again** **now** **was** **right here** **in front of my** **eyes** **,** **in the** **worst** **day** **of my life** **!** If before I was desperate, now I was really angry, things couldn't get any worse; I slowly raised the hand from the door of the restaurant, looking at Mark as if I wanted to kill him at that precise moment; he ran a hand through his hair, obviously uncomfortable

"I can understand how you feel..." he said, staring at me with a guilty look; my anger increased  
" _No, you can't_ " I hissed at him, I turned and headed straight towards my car; I heard footsteps behind me, I had to imagine that he would follow me; he began to speak

"Obviously I know that my apologies wouldn't be enough to forgive what I did, and I understand you don't want to see me anymore, that is why I left the office" he came up and went to my side, staying at some distance ; I had no fear, I was too angry

"Stop following me, or I could report you to the police" I replied annoyed

"I don't think you have to, your alien friend has scrambled me enough the last time; I will still have nightmares for a long time" he pointed to the left side of his face: a long scar started from his temple and came to the jaw, I could still see the stitches; but if he hoped to make me feel sorry, he was completely wrong

"Perfect, if you learned the lesson then _go away_ "

"I want to take advantage of this last opportunity to tell you that sometimes people don't reason so much with the head, do things they don't want to do when they're desperate...of course I know you will not believe me..." I rolled my eyes in exasperation, I couldn't believe all the excuses that he was inventing; I came quickly to the car and opened the door, ready to speeding away from there "...but sometimes when you want something so much, you become crazy just to get it"

I stopped, remaining motionless for a few seconds; I turned slowly to Mark

"Well, it was nice to see you one last time" he said with a half smile "I'm leaving now...I will not ever hurt you again" he turned and started to leave

"...he will leave soon" I said without thinking; he turned to face me, I continued "if it's any consolation, Ne'veah will leave soon, tsk, it was obvious that he would leave; I honestly don't understand why I hoped until the last that he would remain for me, what nonsense, I have to be crazy" I squeezed the door so hard that my knuckles hurt me "and then I don't understand why I like him so much, he is attractive, so? He is gentle, taught me many things, know what is respect, is brave, learned to comfort me, he was always helpful...so what? A lot of people act like this...I can't understand what I like about him! Perhaps for that sort of purring, or when every morning I call him while he is working on that damn ship and comes to greet me...or when we eat together... or when-when his mandibles click when he's nervous..." my eyes were burning terribly, but the tears still bathed my cheeks "but it doesn't matter, nothing matter anymore, I just have to forget him, and things will get better, I'm sure..." I sat on the car seat and wiped my tears, I was about to close the car door but Mark kept me from doing so; I turned him a look of hate and despair, but his expression was impassive

"Sorry, I'm the last person who should tell you what you should or should not do, but I can't let you drive if you're in this state...not after all the bullshit you just said" he was trying to keep the distance, but continued to hold the car door; I looked at him just a second longer, not caring that my face had to be a mask of pain

"...I can't forget him, _I can't_ " I covered my face and cried again, and as I wept, I thought how much I loved him; It was foolish, it was impossible...but the idea of being without him unleashed inside me an unbearable pain.

If someone had told me that Mark and I would come out together again I would have thought he was crazy; yet here I was, eating a piece of pizza with him, in my car and in the middle of the night;

Mark had waited patiently until I had calmed down and then had brought food, without touching me even once; we continued to eat in silence, until he asked me

"Why don't you go with him?"

"I'm sure he wouldn't let me do it, if he doesn't want to stay here with me so he will not want to take me with him; and then I'm not sure if I'm ready to face a world that I don't know, perhaps without the opportunity to return to Earth; I hadn't time to think about it..."

"Well, the decision is yours, but if you're so desperate you should at least try; if I were you, I would try anything before give up, if we talk about a person that I care "

"For example trying to rape her?" I said ironically, he stared at me

"I am convinced that I would stop before, but...the concept is more or less the same" Mark finished eating his pizza "go home and ask him immediately; if you think too much, you risk to change your mind and you may regret it" I looked at him as he left the car; I felt the urge to thank him but I didn't, I couldn't still forgive him for what he had done; he leaned against to the door

"Well, I hope that one day we'll meet again" he said with a greeting

"...Take care, Mark" I greeted him, and as he closed the door I turned on the car. It seemed incredible, that conversation cheered me up, it was difficult to retain all this suffering without being able to talk to anyone; but now I couldn't wait to get home; maybe when Ne'veah will go away I will cry again, but I didn't want to lose hope, and I wanted to spend with him every single moment of time left. Not long after, I was coming into the main road that would take me home, and I was already looking forward to a good talk with my Yautja when I noticed a fire truck that was blocking the passage, while a policeman invited the cars to go back and take another route; I advanced a little bit more to ask for an explanation, but I immediately alarmed when I saw Mrs. Thompson and other neighbors in the street, wearing pajamas or dressing gowns. I pulled the car immediately, I didn't care to be in the second row, and got out, going straight toward them

"Mrs. Thompson" I exclaimed to get her attention "what is going..." I had no time to finish the sentence, as soon as she saw me she burst into tears and came towards me, hugging me strong; her reaction left me very surprised

"Oh dear! How happy I am to know that you're okay! We thought you were trapped in the fire!"

 _Fire_ _?_

" _Mrs. Thompson, what happened?"_ I said seriously concerned

"Oh we don't know, I'm so sorry!" she answered still crying "I-I don't know how to tell you dear, I heard a terrible rumble, and your house..."

 _My house_ _,_ _Ne'veah_...I didn't need further explanation; I started running as fast as I could to my house, ignoring Mrs. Thompson shouting behind me; I passed the fire truck and arrived quickly at the end of the road; I turned right...and instinctively screamed of desperation.

My house was completely burning, part of the roof had already collapsed and the flames rose high into the sky; but it wasn't the house my first thought...I ran immediately to the entrance gate and, with trembling hands, took the keys from the pocket and managed to open it; I went into the garden and looked around, slowly even plants were taking fire

" _ **NE'VEAH!**_ _"_ I screamed with all the breath I had and I went immediately toward the pool, but he wasn't there and the ship was completely destroyed, a set of scrap; I yelled his name again, now completely in panic, when a loud noise caught my attention; I saw him running out of the burning house, wearing his armor; with heart pounding, I ran towards him; I was almost tempted to slap him for the heart attack he had caused me, and at the same time I wanted to kiss him for the relief of seeing him safe and sound

"Ne'veah!" I yelled to get his attention; he turned to me, and I froze at that moment; it was a Yautja... _but it wasn't_ _Ne'veah_.

I understood immediately that it wasn't him, even though he was wearing the mask; I stood there looking at him, amazed and frightened at the same time, while he tilted his head to one side, then take a few steps toward me; instinctively I stepped back, unable even to think. Suddenly, I saw a strange red light appear on his body, three small lights arranged in the shape of a triangle; the Yautja noticed it immediately and stepped back, and just seconds later something flashed between us and exploded, blinding me for a moment

" _Jessica!_ "  
I felt myself grabbed by the waist and lifted sharply from the ground; I blinked a few times to force myself to see, away from that Yautja I didn't know, and when I touched the floor again finally I recognized the face of Ne'veah; instinctively I grabbed his arm with both hands, I was so happy to see him and didn't want to let him go

" **Thank God!** **Are you hurt?!** **We have to...** " he cut me off

" _You mustn't stay_ _here_ _!_ _You must_ _escape_ _imme_..." Ne'veah roared suddenly, leaning forward; almost I screamed when I saw a kind of shuriken stuck behind his left shoulder; my grip on his arm grew stronger, but with a sharp movement Ne'veah threw me in the direction of the gate; I couldn't keep my balance and fell to the ground

" _Run!_ " he yelled, and with lightning speed he pulled out a spear from his back, turned and charged against the other Yautja, roaring furious. I stood up quickly and watched the fight, I wasn't going to leave without him. It was...it was terrible; the ferocity with which they fought and threw against each other was a scary sight; I kept looking Ne'veah, and even though I knew how strong he was, I was afraid for his safety; I wanted to cry, I was scared, wanted to do something with my whole being, and yet...! My heart stopped when two other Yautja appeared behind him; they had appeared out of nowhere, like ghosts, and pointed long blades against Ne'veah; _oh shit_...  
" _Ne'veah!_ _Behind you_ _!_ " but it was too late; Ne'veah barely managed to turn that one of them was able to wrest the spear from his hands, while the other charged against him; the three Yautja attacked him simultaneously, Ne'veah launched a ferocious roar while two of them blocked him by the arms and the third used his claws on him; I cried when I saw the blood spurt from his chest. They were blocking him, imprisoning him...and continued to hurt him; Ne'veah fell to his knees, weakened, while the other Yautja still sank his claws into his flesh. I could no longer contain myself; I wiped the tears from the face and, heedless of the danger, I ran towards them; before the Yautja could hit him again, I placed myself in front of Ne'veah, protecting him with my body; the Yautja stopped abruptly, staying with his arm raised upwards

"Please... _please_ , stop, don't hurt him" I exclaimed desperate and pleading; my body was shaking with fear, but I was determined not to move from here for no reason

" _Jessica_ _ **go away!**_ " roared Ne'veah, but one of the Yautja hit him on the head to silence him, continuing to hold him down; I wanted to say something, but the Yautja in front of me came up to me so much that I lost the use of speech and my body froze in terror; I saw him as he took off the mask, showing me two eyes of a deep emerald green, abruptly grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to himself, so close that his mandibles almost brushed my cheek; instinctively I looked away, I heard him inhale deeply: it seemed incredible to think about, but I thought he was sniffing me; he repeated the gesture again, then grabbed my face and forced me to look at him; his expression seemed confused, and I was surprised when he asked

"Are-you-his-mate?"

I remained silent, unsure of what to say; the Yautja seemed in no hurry and continued to hold me by the arm, loosening the grip on my face and waiting for my answer; instinctively I turned to Ne'veah and our eyes met; an imperceptible movement of his head made me guess he wanted me to answer no, and indeed it was the truth...but I felt that it wasn't the right answer, that in that way I would have lost him forever; I had to be crazy...and so I made my choice

"Yes" I answered a little uncertain; Ne'veah growled behind me. The Yautja looked at me for a moment, then he turned to the other two by clicking his mandibles, and his grip on my arm grew stronger; he pulled out two long blades from his forearm and pointed to my throat, and for a moment I thought he would kill me; but he didn't, and I and Ne'veah were dragged away, heading for the back of the house; I was scared for him and for me, for what could happen, and as we walked I kept watching the Yautja that was holding my arm; when he turned to me and looked at me, I couldn't help but ask

"W-why...why..." I stammered in a trembling voice, but I couldn't say anything else, the fear was too much; the Yautja stopped for a moment and looked in front of him, pointing Ne'veah; he turned back towards me, sighing heavily

"Bad blood" it was the only word he said, and started walking again dragging me with him.


	10. Home

_10\. Home_

Murderer, liar, traitor. This was the response of the Yautja when I asked him the meaning of "Bad blood"; but I couldn't believe it, I didn't want to believe that Ne'veah was even one of these things, not after seeing his kindness, his understanding, and the deep sense of respect and honor he had shown up to that time. I kept thinking about him and the fact that now he wasn't here with me: we were separated as soon as we got on the ship; two Yautja took him away and when I desperately seeking an explanation I was told that they were taking him in a cell; I begged, pleaded, in order to stay by his side but it had been useless; I felt the desperate need to be with him, to talk to him, to feel his presence close to me, his hand that gently stroked my head...instead I was sitting and crouched on the floor in what I believed to be the control room of the ship, still looking at the huge glass window in front of me: we had already left the Earth.

I touched the back of my neck and felt the cold metal of the device that I was obliged to wear, two small tubes came into my nostrils and provided oxygen; the Yautja with green eyes sat in a large armchair in the middle of the room and was ignoring me completely, thinking to control the ship; basically I wasn't a big threat to him, it was stupid to even think of running away. The room was warm but I felt cold, I still had many questions but remained silent; I felt so alone, and desperately wanted my Yautja...I didn't know how long I stood there on the ground, but suddenly I felt a slight tremor of the ship that made me look up; what I saw took my breath away: a huge spaceship, at least ten times larger than this, was opening the tailgate to let us in; I got to my feet and I admired the amazing sight, until the Yautja caught my attention

"Ooman, follow me" he was in front of the door of the room and looked at me impatiently; I didn't have much choice and I did as he told me, holding me at safe distance. When I left the spacecraft I was even more scared than before: I saw too many Yautja armed and dangerous and it seemed that all they looked at me, although some wore the mask. The Yautja with green eyes stopped to talk with another Yautja, or at least I thought he was talking, because they continued to make strange noises and their mandibles clicked frequently.

My hands were shaking for the nervous, and my eyes were searching desperately for something familiar to feel less uncomfortable; instinctively I looked back at the ship that I had just left...and I saw Ne'veah coming out of a side door, this time escorted by four Yautja; I felt an infinite sadness and a terrible anger to see that they had chained his arms and legs and held him like an animal

"Ne'veah!" I yelled to get his attention, ignoring all the rest; he turned to look at me just a moment, but was pushed forward by his captors and was forced to turn his head; my first instinct was to go to him, but I couldn't even make a step that the Yautja with green eyes grabbed me by the arm and pulled me away in the opposite , I could be scared, but this story of being tossed from side to side really began to get on my nerves and I looked at him upset, even though he probably didn't notice.

Again I was forced to take endless corridors and tunnels, until I found myself in front of a huge black metal door that opened to our passage, revealing another control room; it was obviously bigger than the one I had already seen and four Yautja were sitting at their stations, while another was right in the center of the room and had turned toward us, looking surprised; he had two deep ice-blue eyes, but unlike Ne'veah his skin was a cream-colored stained with black, moreover his body was bigger and I could see some scars on his chest. I was pushed towards him, not with force but firmly; I was completely helpless in front of that mountain of muscles and my body didn't held back a shiver of fear; that Yautja still staring at me, and meanwhile spoke with my "guide"; just two seconds after he suddenly exclaimed

"A mate?!" his voice was deep and cold and scared me to death; I wasn't so surprised that he could speak my language; the Yautja looked at me just a few more seconds before speaking

"Honestly, I don't know what to think, Ooman, a Bad blood that mates with a prey is simply ridiculous; in any case, you risk to be killed along with him"

I was scared, frightened, but in that moment it occurred to me only one thing to say

"He...he is not a Bad blood" and even though I knew it was probably useless I began with my pleas "please, I-I don't know what he might have done, but...he always protected me, never acted like a murderer, he has always been..."

"How long have you been with him?" he asked

"E-enough...I don't know exactly, maybe a month...please, let him..."

"Answer my questions, Ooman" he said imperiously

I could do nothing but obey, and timidly began to answer all his questions; and more the interrogation went on the more he forced me to go into details; it seemed ridiculous to tell of the days spent together with Ne'veah, of our habits (and fortunately he didn't ask me anything about the "mating"), but I didn't dare to protest. After that infinite series of strange questions, the Yautja looked at me so intensely that I blushed embarrassed; I heard him sigh deeply, his expression was unreadable

"They were right" he muttered, and immediately turned to the Yautja with green eyes, their mandibles clicked frantically; shortly after he turned back to me, and his gaze seemed deadly serious

"Listen to me, _suckling_ , you will be brought in front of the Elders to discuss this story; I will refer them what you told me and let events take their course; the only thing you have to do is to remain still and silent, don't talk unless requested, _understood_?" he pronounced the last word so threatening that I nodded immediately, too scared to ask questions. The Elders...Ne'veah had mentioned something about them: the highest authority in a Yautja clan, those who make all the decisions. I was taken out of the room, but I turned one last time toward the Yautja with eyes of ice; maybe it was just me, but for a moment I thought he was smiling.

 _Sometime later_...

I couldn't stop to look around; I was fascinated by everything I saw: the sky, the buildings, and of course the Yautja; fuck, Ne'veah had told me that their females were bigger...but I didn't think _so_ big! And I also noticed the children, someone had even stopped to watch me, aaaaw they were so _cute_! With those small mandibles and their sweet eyes! I turned to the Yautja who escorted me; they finally stopped dragging me as a post parcel, but the blades on his forearm were ready to strike at any moment; he looked at me puzzled, and he was right: despite the situation and with the thought of Ne'veah always in my mind, I couldn't contain my astonishment

"I don't know what I would give to live here" I said without thinking, and for a moment I wished it with all of myself. The building in front of me was huge, a giant structure of metal that rose high into the sky, and surely it was here that Elders discussed the important issues; I walked through a maze of corridors and I was forced to stop in front of a door guarded by two Yautja; as soon as they saw us, they came into the room and left us out there, waiting; my eyes didn't leave that closed door even for a second; I prayed, I didn't know who but I prayed, thinking about just one thing: Ne'veah wasn't a Bad blood, and I was ready to challenge even Elders if it was necessary.

When I entered the room my whole body was shivering and my legs were shaking so much that it seemed almost incredible that I could walk; I took a few steps and the door closed behind me; I knew that I was alone, that my guide hadn't followed me, but I didn't turn around, I was too frightened by what I had in front of me...

The Elders, six huge Yautja looking at me, peering at me...I advanced towards them until I had the courage and awaited; they still looked at me, then turned toward each other and began to argue heatedly, the click of their mandibles was terribly noisy, combined with growls and roars. I knew they were talking about me, about my destiny and that of Ne'veah, and although I couldn't understand anything of what they were saying I tried to listen to the noise, hoping to hear something, anything that could be considered good news. The minutes passed inexorably and they continued to discuss; anguish and impatience began to take possession of me; what were they saying? Were good or bad news? The time kept flowing, perhaps I was there for at least a couple of hours and I was starting to get tired of standing there with that confusion; I instinctively put my hands over the ears, trying to drown out the sound; if initially I wanted to hear, now I just wanted get them to stop; fuck, I wanted to know something! I closed my eyes; please, stop...

" **ENOUGH!** "

A roar reverberated in the room, so terrible that I jumped with fright; an Elder left the table and came straight at me, watching me with his amber eyes; the color of his skin was pale and stained with brown, long dreadlocks came up to his chest

"I'm not going to terrorize over this Ooman; my position is unshakable; when also the rest of you will begin to think rationally, you will find me in my chambers"

I trembled with fear to see him get so close and jumped when he put his hand behind my neck, leading me out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind us, the Yautja slammed his hand against the wall and ran his claws on it, growling with anger; I was still where I was, but if I could I would have run without a second thought; he turned to me, and his look became softer

"My apologies if I scared you" he said, and gently put his hand behind my back to invite me to walk, leading me into the building; no pushing, no harsh tone; I stared at him puzzled but he seemed not to notice it

"I hope they weren't too rude to bring you here, they were just doing their duty; you must be tired, are you thirsty? Want something to eat?" he asked; actually my throat was dry and some refreshment it would do me good, so I nodded timidly

"Then I will provide to your needs as soon as possible" he said, and I realized that I liked his voice. I couldn't believe it, he looked so different from Yautja I had met, was kind, gentle, and wasn't so scary; I went with him in a kind of elevator which began to rise on the higher floors of the building; I was still scared, but with him I felt that I could dare to ask some questions

"W-where are we going?" I asked in a small voice

"My mate wants to talk to you; we will explain in detail what's going on, don't worry" his smile made me blush; maybe something was finally going in the right direction. The Elder opened a door on the right side of the corridor; as soon as I entered my heart skipped a bit: a large window showed a breathtaking view of the surrounding vegetation; at the center of the room there were two leather couches facing each other and between them there was a table with a vase of flowers, terrestrial flowers

"Sunflowers!" I exclaimed, and instinctively I approached the table; that room looked so daily, comfortable, so...human...

"Do you like them?" said a voice behind me; I turned, and my eyes widened in surprise: a lovely, beautiful human woman was looking at me with a bright smile; she wore a beautiful dress in bright colors that came down to the ground, opening up in a wide skirt; shoulders were uncovered, as the belly…a round belly…oh god…She approached smiling and gently closed my mouth, remained open in amazement

"I imagine you have many questions to ask, but there's a time for everything" she gently placed her hands on my shoulders "my name is Elise, and he is my mate, Ate'yo; welcome to our clan"

 _Oh fuck_...

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Hiiii! Finally, I posted another chapter, hope you like it; as usual thanks to every single person who reviews or follows my story, but ...what? Don't you know who are Elise and Ate'yo? Go read my previous story! Sorry if you find mistakes but I haven't had time to correct them and still I'm not good enough in English to understand if certain things are right or not; Help me if you want :) bye bye!


	11. Strategy

_11\. Strategy_

It was difficult to eat, not because the meat wasn't good (in fact it was delicious) but I couldn't look away from what was going on: four Yautja males were fighting against Ate'yo; they were much smaller than he, the biggest was as tall as me, while the smallest barely reached my shoulders; and yet, despite the physical difference, they pounced on him with determination and tried to sink their claws into his flesh, while Ate'yo grabbed and threw them to the ground one by one; I swallowed with difficulty another piece of meat and looked at Elise who was eating without much attention to the show; I couldn't help but ask

"A-are you sure...they're just playing?"

"Absolutely, don't worry, my kids love to have fun with their father after training" she replied smiling and stroked her belly "but to be honest, I couldn't wait to have another girl in the house; when my daughter will be born I hope she will be more quiet of her brothers" and went back to eating quietly. Yeah...her children; I still couldn't believe it and I continued to observe that "friendly" fight; now that I noticed, they all seemed perfectly normal: with the exception of one who had the skin of a very pale pink color, the others were all Yautja without deformation or human characteristics

"It wasn't easy" said Elise, perhaps sensing my thoughts "I had to make hundreds of checks, and at each birth I was forced to do a caesarean; our technology is advanced, but that doesn't mean that it's never painful" and then she showed again her bright smile "but it was worth it; Ate'yo and I wanted so much to have children, and in the end everything went well"

 _Our_ technology, not _their_ ; Elise was an integral part of this clan, and for her it was like being at home; for the first time I wondered if I would consider this place home; I thought about my mother, who now was certainly worried about me, and about my friends...but I thought also to Ne'veah; I wonder where he had been taken, in chains, all alone...I was distracted from my thoughts when Elise stood up from the couch and pronounced a series of incomprehensible words; the children stopped immediately to attack their father, and I saw Ate'yo that patted them on the head one by one, while Elise smothered them with tenderly kisses on their mandibles; I smiled seeing how the older children seemed a little upset and I didn't stop to follow them with the look until they left the room; it was time of conversation between adults. Ate'yo and Elise sat down on the couch in front of me and he put his arm around her shoulders; they were so tender...

"We have already received some information but we prefer to hear them from you directly, so speak freely" said Ate'yo

It was the moment of truth; I didn't know what would have happened, but they had been very nice to me and I would feel terribly guilty if I continued to lie; I took a deep breath

"I...I'm sorry, I lied, I'm not Ne'veah's mate" brief, clear, concise; as I imagined, a look of astonishment appeared on their faces, and I just wanted to bury me somewhere but didn't know if for shame or fear of their reaction; I saw them while they exchanged a puzzled look before looking at me again

"Why did you lie?" asked Elise, the tone calm but confused

"I thought...I thought that if I told the truth I wouldn't have been able to remain close to Ne'veah" I felt my cheeks burning, I was probably as red as a tomato; an unbearable silence fell for a few seconds before Ate'yo began to speak

"Do you realize that you're risking your life to defend a traitor?"

"...I...I failed, I didn't even try to think Ne'veah was a traitor, not after the time we spent together; and..." I looked at them both in the eyes "...and I'm not going to leave him like this, I don't want to lose him, and I'm ready to do whatever it takes…to be near him" I uttered those last words with an incredible difficulty; it was embarrassing, but it was the truth, after all I had risked my life in any time to get here and I wasn't going to give up now; I liked h...no, I _loved_ him. To my surprise, Ate'yo erupted in what was surely a laugh, although a bit strange

"This reminds me a crazy Ooman of 10 years ago..." he said, and in response Elise punched him on the chest, puffing irritated; Ate'yo seemed really amused and I couldn't stop thinking that they were absolutely adorable; she turned to me

"I like your determination, Ne'veah is not a traitor; he was one of the pupils of Ate'yo, and we are absolutely sure that he would never do something dishonorable" to those words I was very surprised, but I had to use all my courage to ask

"What...what would he do?" Elise hesitated a moment before answering

"He killed two members of another clan" in a certain sense I imagined that she would say something very serious, but between imagine and hear it there was a big difference; in each case I shook my head

"If this is considerable as something dishonorable it's absurd and impossible, he would never do such a thing"

"He did it" said Ate'yo, and that statement was a shock for me, but he continued "what is important is to understand _why_ he did it" and said this he typed a few buttons on the device that had on the forearm; a hologram of a planet appeared before me, a world that I didn't know; Ate'yo began a long explanation

"This planet, not very far from our own, is inhabited by a clan of Yautja with which we have had peaceful relations for many years; lately, however, this relationship hasn't been so good and we have reason to believe that they are interested in our territories; however, we spoke to some of their Elders and not everyone seemed willing to start a war; it was sufficient a pretext, an excuse to push everyone to fight" Ate'yo looked into my eyes, I knew immediately what he meant; he continued in the explanation "they told us that they had sent messengers to discuss about new peace agreements, but they claim that Ne'veah have attacked them and killed two of the three messengers, and then run away; our code requires that no Yautja can kill another, intentionally or not, without a valid consent of an Elder. Now the other clan asks revenge for the companions killed, and the only thing that can prevent a war is to deliver Ne'veah and let them kill him, but we believe that even if we did, this would not solve things"

I felt my heart pounding in my chest, the situation was more serious than I thought, and much bigger than me; yet the anger was stronger than fear: those bastards were using Ne'veah as a scapegoat for their dirty purposes, and that pissed me off like a beast; Elise started talking

"You know, Ne'veah was ready to die for our clan, the first thing he did was to come to us and warn us, saying that the other clan was going to attack" she sighed "but unfortunately when you get marked as a Bad blood no one is willing to believe you, and the only surviving witness was the third messenger of the other clan, which obviously accused Ne'veah of murder; we obviously couldn't reply, there were no witnesses in his favor, it would be like declaring war openly" her tone hardened "every Yautja on this clan is part of my family, and I can't see someone die unjustly; I and Ate'yo ordered to Ne'veah to escape and to take time to find an alternative solution. Sadly not all the Elders agreed with us and some have sent their warriors to look for him, and unfortunately he was captured; when we have heard it, we thought all was lost" a smile appeared on her face "but now we have you"

"...Me?"

"Generally..." said Ate'yo "a Bad blood tends to act irrationally, loses all reason, and in extreme situations, manages to kill everything that meet; no one would believe Ne'veah even though he was telling the truth, but your story can dispute the claims of the other clan and gain more time"

"...They couldn't believe it; after all I'm just a human..."

" _You're not just a human_ " Elise interrupted me with a firm tone "you are much more than that, you're the key that could save him; take off immediately this stupid thought from the head, or you risk that your fears get the better" Ate'yo put a hand on her shoulder and she gave him a sweet smile, maybe she spoke from personal experience; in any case, there still remained a problem to solve

"Okay, you can still take some time, but the other clan will not wait forever; how do we prove that Ne'veah is innocent without giving them the opportunity to react?" I asked

"I was discussing with the Elders precisely of this" said Ate'yo "the best solution would be to send a team of experienced warriors to infiltrate in their base and discover the person behind all this; we are convinced that the real traitor is someone of their clan, even though we aren't sure who might be; if they believe that Ne'veah is still escpaing, probably their troops will continue to search and without the whole army the risk of being caught would be lower. Obviously for some Elders is crazy, why risk the lives of brave warriors and start a war just to save a Yautja? But they fail to realize that if we don't try something war will break out in any case, Ne'veah might be only the first of many excuses that will push both clans to fight"

"In other words if we can't convince them it will be a disaster" I said

"In short, yes" Elise said with a half smile. Damn, I was already quite nervous because the situation was critical, but she and Ate'yo were enduring a burden far bigger than mine: at risk there was the security of their clan and they were doing their best to protect each Yautja, including Ne'veah; I wondered if there was anything I could do to help them when Elise interrupted my thoughts

"Do you want to see him?" she asked smiling

"…Can I?" I replied, excited

"They can't deny this right to his mate; I'll take you to him, so the guards will not cause too many problems...if you want to see him"

"It's the only thing I want" I said with a happy smile; Elise nodded and turned to Ate'yo; a slight blush covered my cheeks and instinctively turned my head to avoid looking as they kissed, greeting each other

"If there are any problems, call me immediately" said Ate'yo, while Elise and I went out of the room. As the door closed behind us, she said

"The last time I asked for his help, he was about to cause a mass genocide, and just because someone still didn't accept the presence of a human in the clan" we smiled both amused and started walking down the hallway

"How is...live with the Yautja?" I asked

"At the beginning it's a bit complicated, but when you understand the way they think is not so difficult"

"And...with Ate'yo?" I asked a little hesitant; her face lit up with joy and gave me a beautiful smile

"He is my dream come true, I can't live without him" those words moved me deeply, their love was really strong; timidly I began to ask a few questions about that complex and wonderful world, while my thoughts were for Ne'veah; I couldn't quantify the love I felt for him, but one thing was sure: I would do anything to save him.


	12. With you

Hi guys! oooh finally I posted a new chapter! I'm sorry, the time to write is shrinking drastically. In any case I hope you enjoy, thanks as always for reading!

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12\. _With you_

My heart was beating fast as I watched Elise with a mixture of impatience and apprehension; she was addressing some unintelligible words to the guard in front of us, probably ordering him to open the door of the cell; I felt my hands shaking and my head was a whirl of thoughts: what could I tell him? How I should behave? He would have been happy to see me? Damn, I was going crazy for the nervous!

"The cell is not for you, Jessica, you shouldn't be so worried" said Elise amused, and at those words I couldn't help smiling; the guard opened the cell door and waited; I swallowed a handful of saliva and prepared to meet him, but Elise gently rested a hand on my shoulder

"Now I have to go talk to the Elders, hoping that they will listen to our requests; I'll let you know as soon as possible of any news but for now I want to tell you one thing: whatever happens, never give up, continue to fight for what you believe but mostly believe in him, always believe in him, ok Jessica?" those words seemed a bit unusual in a time like this, but I nodded; she hugged me, surprising me; that human contact was a real pleasure, it was a while that I needed it; ok, I was ready. The cell door slammed shut behind me; the light wasn't very intense but enough to allow me to see him; _oh my god_...Ne'veah was chained to the wall with his arms locked up and the ankles surrounded by heavy chains; his eyes were closed and his head was bent forward with the jaws half-open; and the blood...his face and his chest were so full of blood that looked like someone had thrown on him a bucket of green paint; my heart felt indescribable pain and I forgot all the paranoia made just a moment before; I approached him, my legs were shaking

"Ne'veah..." I called softly, as if even my words could hurt him; he opened the eyes and lifted the head slowly, giving me a surprised look

"Jessica..." he said my name wearily, and this only made me feel worse

"My God, what have they done..." I went even further, continuing to look at the wounds; my first instinct was to touch him but immediately suppressed that desire; I had to do something right away...I didn't have anything useful with me, but still wearing my jacket so I took it off and folded it as I could; without thinking too much, I began to dab the wounds on his chest as gently as possible, my eyes scanned every centimeter of his muscles to assess the severity of his condition; I didn't know who had done this, but he just had to hope not to meet me...Ne'veah uttered my name again, I turned to look at him

"shhh, don't talk, save your energies" I said softly with a smile, continuing to heal him as I could; he was silent for a few more seconds before speaking again

"Why..." he asked

"Why what?"

"Why did you lie, why did you let them bring you here; you're not safe, especially if they believe that you are my mate"

"I didn't know what would happen, but I'm glad that they did" I said, blushing a little, feeling the urgency to change the subject "but why they have done this, it's...it's..." I snorted in exasperation, trying to control anger

"It's what traitors deserve"

"You're not a traitor, you've never been, I am absolutely convinced of this; and also Elise and Ate'yo think like me" to those words, his mandibles snapped

"Did you talk to my master?" he asked in a tone of surprise

"Yes, and if you stop talking and try to regain your strength I'll explain everything"

I explained briefly how I had met Ate'yo, and then the details of their idea to infiltrate the enemy base; and more I explained more his expression was puzzled; when I finished, Ne'veah shook his head several times

"It's crazy, risking the lives of brave warriors to save one Yautja"

"They are trying to do what is right, even if it is risky" I finished cleaning the blood from his chest and looked at his face, unsure of how to proceed; I lifted the jacket, almost completely dirty, towards his lower mandibles and I realized to be too short in relation to him; Ne'veah leaned forward to help me, even if the chains didn't allow him to move freely. I began to dab his face while an unpleasant feeling of embarrassment came over me: damn, now it had become almost impossible not to think that the distance between us was extremely limited; my body reacted instinctively and began to overheat, but I tried to control my impulses as I could, I didn't want to bother him with my smell. Ne'veah continued to keep his head down, his mandibles clicked slowly and looking lost: he was thinking; I had just started to dab his forehead (and I was really dying with embarrassment) when suddenly he raised the head and looked at me straight in the eyes; I became as red as a tomato: his mandibles were so close they could touch my face

"I have to go" he said

"...What?" I asked without understanding

"We will not solve anything if I will continue to run away; I'll get into the enemy clan to find out who is plotting all this" I looked at him as if he were crazy, I couldn't believe it

"Er, perhaps I wasn't clear: Elise and Ate'yo are trying to _protect_ you, and you want to go right to bastards who want your head? If they catch you..."

"If I'm still here it means that the Elders haven't yet contacted the other clan; if they think I'm still on the run it would be easier not to be identified; we'll win in any case: if I'll die in the mission the enemy will no longer have an excuse to attack" I was nothing short of shocked at those words, but it was even worse when he said "you have to talk to Elise and Ate'yo; Elders never listen to a traitor, but with your help I can tell them my intentions"

"...excuse me?! You want **me** to sign your own death warrant?! Ne'veah, maybe they beat you up too much and you have lost your mind"

"Is the only solution to prevent the killing of innocent Yautja for my mistakes, you have to do it" his voice was deadly serious, but that didn't change my opinion

"No, I can't" I said firmly; Ne'veah growled, looking me irritated

"This don't concern you, Jessica, you don't get to decide what to do"

"What?!" I exclaimed, starting to get frustrated "you're asking me to send you to die! If the Elders accept your idea you risk being killed because **I** have convinced Elise and Ate'yo to send you there!"

"It's my choice, Ooman!" he growled louder "Don't dare to decide for me!"

"So you don't make me..." I had no time to finish the sentence that Ne'veah roared furiously, unleashing his anger; he began to push forward, trying to break free from the chains

" _We're just wasting time! Do you really want to start a war?! Do you really want to make things worse so much?! Do you really want to sacrifice everything to save me?!_ "

"...If I could, yes" I said softly, looking into his eyes "if I could, I would sacrifice anything to save you...if I could, I would give my life to save yours"

Dead silence fell in the room; Ne'veah looked at me with eyes wide with surprise, but I couldn't hold his gaze and lowered my head in defeat, while the sadness took possession of me; it was obvious that I didn't want to start a war or see the death of innocents or witness the defeat of his clan; but for him...yet he was right, it was the most logical solution to do and my feelings wouldn't have changed things; I crossed my arms, feeling alone and frightened in front of a terrible and inevitable choice; I took a deep breath and pulled back the tears, I had only one request, only one  
"You're right, it's your choice, but at least take me with you; probably I would be a burden, but don't ask me to stay here while you're out there risking your life; just... _please_..." I stared at him pleadingly; Ne'veah looked me straight in the eyes, then sighed heavily and shook his head

"I can't understand your stubbornness, but I have no right to stop you" I just nodded to his statement; I threw the jacket on the floor and headed for the exit of the cell; there was no other solution, it was inevitable, but the pain I felt was so overwhelming that I could die. The guard wasn't familiar with my language and it wasn't very easy to ask to take me to Elise and Ate'yo; I came back in front of the room of the Elders and waited patiently for their arrival; Elise left the room and met me, but when she saw my expression she understood immediately that something was wrong. With difficulty I explained the intentions of Ne'veah and my request to leave with him, and although her expression frowned couldn't help but nod; probably she wasn't at all happy with the thing, but she had to think about the good of her clan; she gently placed a hand on my shoulder  
"Your courage honors you, I'm sorry you got involved in this story; but I'm sure if you'll be at his side everything will be fine" she smiled gently and asked me to wait in her rooms while she suggested this new idea to the Elders. When I arrived in her chambers I sank down on the couch and buried my head in a pillow, remaining in that position for an indefinite time; I felt tired, empty, terribly depressed; I wasn't afraid to die, well a bit yes, but what was most frustrating was my inability to convey my feelings to Ne'veah, and it didn't matter whether he had told me that feelings such as love and affection were difficult concepts for his race, the fear of losing him was unbearable.

Probably I was about to fall asleep when I heard the metallic noise of the door opening; immediately I jumped up and saw Elise and Ate'yo enter the room, their faces tense and tired; even though I was anxious to ask questions I sat down on the couch and waited; it had to be particularly stressful to discuss such important issues, and I worried for Elise and her pregnancy, she seemed quite exhausted; Ate'yo hugged her gently and let her go, she gave me a tired smile before entering another room, stroking her belly; Ate'yo sat on the sofa in front of me

"My mate needs to rest, so I'll explain everything. The Elders have accepted the proposal of Ne'veah, a spacecraft will be prepared for your mission; the only condition imposed is the possibility to control your displacements, so Ne'veah will wear a tracking device; in this way they will know if he'll try to run away, even if we know that he will not do it" he seemed a bit angry about the solution, but in the end it was no surprise that they didn't trust us

"...We will succeed" I said; it was no longer possible to go back, and I had to convince myself that everything would be fine; Ate'yo seemed to approve my determination and nodded  
"Then I will make preparations for departure; now you too have to rest, it's not a pleasure trip" and said this, he rose from the couch and left the room; he was right, and so I left that sleep take over.

 _Sometime later_...

I felt extremely uncomfortable, continuing to look at me: I couldn't leave with my own dresses and then Elise gave me some of her clothes and an armor; but remain with all this exposed skin made me feel terribly embarrassed. She and I were in a sort of hangar and in front of us there was a spacecraft ready to take off; Ne'veah came together with Ate'yo and four other guards, who continued to hold the blades against him; the first thing I noticed was the collar that N'eveah wore, a black metal device that completely covered his neck; I continued to look at him as the guards moved away and Ate'yo began to speak in their own language; I felt terribly distressed and jumped when Elise put her hands on my shoulders

"I understand how you feel, I've been there too" she said with a smile, but this didn't comfort me at all

"I...don't know what to do; I mean...he's so close..."

"And yet so far, right?" she asked, stroking my arm; I looked at her surprised, she really understood what I was feeling "everything will be fine Jessica, look" she put a hand on my face and made me turn towards Ne'veah "he is there, just a few steps away from you; and he is more attainable than what you think, just open your heart and show him what you feel"

"But I did it, I told him that I like him and I would give my life for him" she shook her head  
"Words are a starting point, but alone aren't sufficient; to avoid detection, the spacecraft will be set at a low speed, and it will take three days to reach the planet; talk to him, live with him, don't be afraid"  
"But I'm not afraid of him"

"Are you sure? Could you lay your hands on his shoulders without problems, as I am doing with you now?" when Elise saw my embarrassed expression, she smiled "See?"

I looked at my hands; damn, it was true...Ate'yo stopped talking to Ne'veah and the tailgate of the spacecraft opened; Elise hugged me

"Good luck, my friend, and don't forget: never stop trying; I will pray Paya for your return; I and Ate'yo will do everything possible to gain time" I returned her embrace; I was happy to have met her. Ne'veah and I went on board the ship and the tailgate closed behind us. Three days just me and him...I wondered if I was in heaven or hell.


	13. Realization

13\. Realization

I explored the ship from top to bottom, trying to get used to the new environment and my new room, really too big for me; and while I explored, Ne'veah remained closed in the control room for several hours, without going out not even once; as soon as we set foot in the ship something had changed, I didn't know exactly what, but he was...different; I thought he was nervous about our situation and at first I decided not to disturb him and continue to wander through the corridors, taking care not to touch anything, but soon my desire to stay at his side had become stronger and I decided to go to him to be able to exchange a few words.

A sense of unease came over me as soon as I set foot in the control room; perhaps because his mandibles clicked nervously, or his movements seemed a bit abrupt, or even because he hadn't deigned to me a look, but I stayed in the doorway like an idiot, intimidated by his way of doing, too much different from usual. I watched him for a while at a distance, as he continued to handle with machines, buttons and holographic projections; I had thought to approach or try to talk to him, seriously, but that situation had made me so nervous that at the end I went back to my room, thinking that a good night's sleep would do me good.

No, I was too frustrated to sleep, and I continued to roll in bed restless; I couldn't understand what to do, how to follow the advice of Elise; Ne'veah scared me, but not in a literal sense: I was scared by the feelings I had for him and his reactions, when the only thing I wanted was to be myself and to be near him...and once again the time wasn't in my favor, I had already wasted many precious hours. After an indefinite time I decided to get up and wash my face with a fine jet of cold water, hoping that would serve to clear my head; I just had to stay calm and try to talk to him, basically Ne'veah didn't bite!...I believed. I opened the door and rubbed my eyes, but I wasn't careful enough and my nose slammed against a wall; instinctively I closed my eyes and rubbed the painful part; what the fuck…

"Are you okay?" Ne'veah leaned toward me

"Have you the cement instead of abs? Ouch" I said continuing to rub my nose

"Show me" he reached out a hand to me; I was about to tell him that it wasn't necessary but I changed my mind when he touched my nose with the fingers, making sure it was intact; I liked that touch, it was the only one I'd received since we were taken off. Ne'veah asked me if I wanted to eat something and I nodded grateful, hoping that finally we could find some time to talk; how wrong I was: he was silent all the time, and his eyes never deviated from the meat on his plate; he didn't seem even to notice my presence and this behavior discouraged me from asking questions; I didn't like it, it wasn't the Ne'veah I knew...As soon as he finished eating, he got up and walked back to the control room; this time I was determined not to give up so easily, so I finished my meat and followed him shortly after. I entered the room and saw him sitting in front of a huge table that projected a hologram of something; I walked over and realized it was a kind of map

"What are you doing?" I asked timidly; he looked back at me, and for a moment I had the impression that he was a little annoyed for the interruption

"I'm studying the territory to develop a strategy" he said briefly

"Oh, I see" it was the only thing I could say, and remained standing at his side, watching that huge projection: probably it was the land where the enemy clan lived; it wasn't very detailed, but enough to understand where there were buildings and roads; and while with one eye I watched the map, with the other looked Ne'veah, sitting rigidly with his hands resting on his knees. Again that uneasy feeling; I felt as if between him and me there was an impenetrable wall, impossible to overcome, and the anguish I felt was so overwhelming that my chest hurt. One snap of his mandibles made me turn and I realized that he was watching me; for a moment I feared that he would be angry

"I'm giving you trouble?" I asked

"No" he looked back in front of him; I also went back to look at the map, but of course for me it was impossible to work out a strategy, not just for my ignorance, but because the only thing I wanted at that moment was to talk to him, discuss what was going on sitting at a table, as we had always done...to my house...together...I immediately banished that thought out of my head and took a deep breath, ready to talk, when I heard him sigh heavily and put a hand over his eyes; probably he was tired

"You should rest, you haven't recovered from your wounds" I said shyly

"I can't, we have no time" he answered curtly

"Yes, but...if you don't rest you can't think clearly, is...is that so difficult?" Ne'veah sighed again and finally turned to face me

"These are the only coordinates that we have to get an idea of their territory, but a lot of data are missing and it's not easy to guess the right moves; in any case, no matter what strategy I choose, for you it would be always risky"

"I'm sorry, but please, pay no attention to me; choose the best strategy to win in order to stay alive, don't think about what could happen to me...if this is the problem" my hands were shaking for the nervous, and it was hard to look at him; Ne'veah gaze was unreadable, his eyes focused on me put me uncomfortable. After just a few more seconds of silence, he sighed again and stood up from the chair, coming close; he put his hand on my head and gently stroked it, surprising me

"You're so fragile that you could die at any moment and yet continue to risk your life to save mine; your courage is comparable to that of our best warriors" the compliment made me smile for happiness and blush a little; Ne'veah paused a moment, probably looking for the right words, before continuing "I'd like to understand how you feel, my master told me often of human feelings but to me, as many of my kind, they are still a mystery; yet these emotions gave you the strength to get here, with a devotion that not even a faithful companion can give; probably without you I'd be dead already..." his gaze wavered "I was wrong to take action without consulting you, you are also involved in this story and you have to be aware of my decisions; I don't know if that means anything to you, but I will not leave you behind, we will find a solution together...and I will not let you die, I will protect you with every means"

I wanted to cry with joy; Ne'veah was trying to understand me...it was fantastic

"Welcome back" I said smiling "this is the Ne'veah I know" he nodded and sat back, inviting me to come closer. I felt much better and I went by his side, ready to work together; I barely had time to look at the map again that I felt him grab me by the hips and pull me towards him; I held my breath as Ne'veah made me sit on his lap, my back resting against his chest and his warm breath on my shoulder; my body heated up instantly, but he began to show me different points on the map, talking fast; I tried to direct all my attention to what he was telling me, forgetting everything else; it seemed that a new energy flowed into him and was now more ready than ever to deal with the situation, and I was too.

Hours passed inexorable, he explained everything that was necessary and I did my best to learn as much as I could; we worked together to develop a strategy: hypothesized the best access route, the safest sub-steps, the location of guards and any possible incident or contretemps; and the thing that made me happiest was that he listened to my every suggestion or doubt, without thinking that it might be something useless or silly. I was so intent to help him that I ignored fatigue and after all that time my eyes were so tired that I couldn't even keep them open; Ne'veah was in the midst of an explanation but stopped when saw me suppress a yawn

"We both need to rest, we will continue after recovering forces"

"I'm sorry, I don't have your own strength" I said suppressing another yawn; I stood up but I did it too suddenly and I had a dizzy; I fell back pitifully on Ne'veah's lap, he put a hand on my shoulder

"Let me help you" I was so tired that I could do nothing but nod and let him guide me through the corridors, continuing to hold my shoulders; my mind was so foggy that I couldn't even remember precisely the moment when he picked me up bridal style and carried me to my room. I should be embarrassed or excited, but my body was too tired to react. Ne'veah helped me take off those few pieces of metal I was wearing, made me lie on the bed and covered me with furs; the heat contributed to my sleepiness

"Thanks Ne'veah, for everything" I uttered those words without thinking, he looked at me puzzled

"I don't understand what you should thank; I overturned your life on Earth, you were captured with me even though you were innocent, taken away from your planet, treated as a Phyonde Amheda and, to make matters worse, you were involved in a war in which you could die"

"and remember that you also have destroyed the pool" I said, chuckling, but he remained serious; I decided not to care and smiled, suppressing yet another yawn "maybe you're right, you came into my life without knocking and without explanations, but that's why I thank you * yawn *: because now, when I think of my life without you, then suddenly I lose the desire to live; it was my choice to follow you, to come with you, to get embroiled in something so big and dangerous; I couldn't do it, but I did it; I know well that you still don't understand these feelings, the only thing I ask is to stay close to you... * yawn * thanks Ne'veah; for having destroyed the pool" I couldn't keep my eyes open and yawned openly; I tried to mumble a greeting and a good night (but I wasn't sure he had understood me) and I turned to one side, sinking in furs. Perhaps it was just my impression, sleep was playing tricks on me, but I felt his hand through my hair, and the sweet sound of his purring that filled my ears, accompanying me in the sweetest of dreams.

* * *

Hi guys! Finally another chapter! I know, I know, maybe it's not my best chapter, but I hope you like it! And I want to make a question; try to imagine: three days alone with your Yautja, what would you do? I wait a lot of answers!


	14. Last Moments

Hi guys! Wow it's been a while since the last chapter, and I am glad that you continue to follow me although I am very busy during this time :) Hope you like it, but first I want to answer a couple of your recent reviews:

Alura9287: I would also like to learn something from them on defense or traps...after sex, of course

CheebieBeebie: I will not disappoint you;)

* * *

14\. _Last Moments_

The darkness in the room was full, but I continued to advance toward his bed, hands stretched forward; I gently touched the furs that covered his body, guiding me towards his figure; I could hear him breathe deeply, and the idea that he was unaware of what was going on caused me a thrill of excitement. Slowly I climbed on the bed and slipped under the sheets, my naked body eager to touch his; finally my hands reached his back, stroking it gently

"Ne'veah..." I pronounced his name deeply and lustfully, stroking his side with my leg. The sound of his purr filled my ears, fueling my desire; he turned to me and I pressed my body against his, both hot as two furnaces; his hands began to explore each centimeter of my skin, while my hands sunk in his long dreadlocks and my mouth kissed his lower mandible. Ne'veah stood over me with his size, pressing his body against mine; I moaned with pleasure and circled his hips with my legs, as he rubbed his erection against me; I could feel the head of his cock pressing against my opening; and with a unique, single thrust he was inside me. I moaned with pleasure and arched my back, as I felt his tongue over my neck; I raised my head...and I cried.

It wasn't saliva, Neveah was bleeding profusely and his blood soiled my body; his chest was ripped open and guts' coming out from his body, part of his head was missing. I kicked and screamed with all my strength, but it was all in vain, until a knife cut his body into two, and a stream of blood spurted everywhere; a dark figure approached, I couldn't see his face but I knew it was a Bad blood; his blade was pointed at me, and with a single shot I saw my own guts out of my stomach...

I awoke with a start, breathing fast and the heart pounding in the chest. A dream, it was just a fucking dream. Slowly I sat down on the bed and I kept my head, trying to control the rhythm of my breath and wipe the tears on my face. It took me several minutes to calm down and, as soon as I was sure I could stand on my legs, I decided immediately to give me a wash, feeling sweaty and sticky. I lost at least half an hour locked in the bathroom, almost as if I were convinced that the freezing water could wash away my thoughts; but that dream didn't want to leave, continuing to torture my body with shivers of terror. I left the bathroom and searched Ne'veah, feeling the desperate need to see him safe and sound; timidly I opened the door of his room, but he wasn't there, and I didn't find him even in the kitchen for breakfast; I walked into the control room and I saw him on the huge command chair, making me breathe a sigh of relief. I went to meet him with the best of smiles, trying to dispel from the mind that horrible nightmare

"Hey, I thought I'd lost you..." I stopped when I saw him: he was sleeping; his head was tilted forward, the mandibles closed and motionless, arms relaxed along the body; I watched his chest heaving to the rhythm of his breath and I was fascinated to look at him. No matter how big, dangerous or alien he was, from my point of view he was adorable. I took courage and I leaned toward him, placing a hand on his shoulder; I was embarrassed to the touch but that contact made me feel a little better; I approached even more, an immediate desire to feel him close, while as usual my body began to overheat; I would have liked to kiss him...I was seriously considering the idea when I saw his mandibles moving slowly, and then click nervously; instinctively I drew back the hand, and he swung his head from side to side, perhaps still a bit groggy, before opening eyes and look at me

"Jessica..." his voice was a little hoarse and he kept shaking his head

"Good morning, I'm sorry I woke you up; why didn't you sleep in your room? Don't..." he put his hand on my shoulder, trying to push me away; I stared at him in alarm

"Jessica, please..." he purred for a moment before cutting it off "your scent is too strong..."

I snapped back as soon as he finished the sentence, visibly blushing; I had completely forgotten about this little problem; Ne'veah shook his head violently to recover and barely held back other purr; it took a few seconds before he could get up from the chair

"...Errr, sorry" I said, trying to apologize

"Never mind" he replied, though he still looked a little dazed "we have a problem"

"Huh?"

"Probably we will reach the planet with 7 hours in advance, we must try to make the most of the time we have left"

"And what we have left?" I asked, worried

"About 40 hours" less than two days, my last chance to enjoy these quiet moments with him; anguish began to devour me, and keep it under control became increasingly difficult. We began to work hard; we tried to perfect what we had missed the time before, assuming the best possible strategy: the invisibility was our essential protection, but this didn't guarantee total safety; perhaps we could take advantage of secondary roads to avoid attracting attention, but settle in their headquarters was another matter; in any case, even if I was helping him, my job was basically to follow his orders always and however, I had to act on my own just in case we were discovered and for this Ne'veah explained the functioning of the weapons. He helped me to wear each piece of armor that Elise had given me and taught me the gun operation and the blades on the arm; I didn't know if I would actually be able to use them, but I had no choice; the more time passed, the more I realized that I was embarking on a mission really crazy; and that damn dream did nothing but accentuate my fears.

We decided to take a break and eat something to regain strength; and while I chewed my piece of meat, sitting at the kitchen table, I tried to mentally revise everything I had learned and drive away those horrible thoughts of death; but I couldn't get out of my head the image of Ne'veah cut in half...it took me a while to notice that he was watching me, I turned him a questioning look

"You should not be here" he said

"...I'm sorry, I know that I'm just a ball and chain" I said resentful; he looked at me surprised

"It wasn't what I meant; just..." he searched the right words "the closer we get our target, the more I realize that your constitution is too fragile for this mission; you done enough allowing me to have a chance to redeem my honor, you should stay safe, together with my clan or returning to Earth" I was happy that he seemed a little worried about me, but I sighed

"Ne'veah I've already said it: I'm here because I want to be here; I know that for you it may seems something stupid or totally illogical, and maybe I'm creating more problems than anything else, but it's okay for me, really" the silence returned to fill the room again; with the corner of my eye I watched Ne'veah eating in silence, his mandibles clicked slowly; surely he was still trying to figure out what I had in my head, when the truth was that I had completely lost my head for him...

"In my culture it's customary to return the favor with something of equal value, as you may have already noticed, but this time I have nothing to repay you adequately"

"I have everything I need..." I said, becoming as red as a tomato; I had to make a tremendous effort to say "you are here" I knew he was looking at me but I avoided looking in his eyes. Ne'veah didn't reply to that statement and continued to eat in silence until he got up from the table

"Let's get back to work" and I was happy to nod and be able to escape from that awkward moment. Ne'veah continued train me in the use of weapons, and in the meantime we repeated for the umpteenth time our strategy, including all details and possible mishaps. I did my best, trying to memorize everything as fast as possible, but the anguish inside me was unbearable; I was aware that every hour, every minute, every second that slipped away was a precious moment that would never come back. After training I was really exhausted, but I couldn't distinguish the physical from the mental fatigue, anxiety was likely to take my breath away. When it came time to go to sleep, I was not at all pleased, and as I walked alongside Ne'veah to my room sadness enveloped me: I was reaching the limit

"What...what will we do tomorrow?" I asked Ne'veah, interrupting an oppressive silence

"We have done everything we can, the best thing to do is to rest before the mission; I will teach you something else, but you mustn't get too tired"

I reached my room and greeted Ne'veah, turning toward the door; and observing the large metal surface, my breathing quickened; I never hated so much an object in my life, it took me just a few seconds to realize that enter into that fucking room was out of the question. The time was coming, I was risking my life, maybe we were about to die, maybe I would have lost Ne'veah forever...his body covered in blood...air, I needed air; I walked away from the door and turned to leave, but stopped when I saw that Ne'veah was still in the hallway and was staring at me; his expression unreadable. I looked into his eyes, continuing to breathe heavily

"I…can't go to sleep, I don't want, I am afraid" I confessed

His mandibles clicked, his expression impassive; I felt tears in my eyes; he was trying to understand my feelings, and I could stay at his side; but it wasn't enough, that wall between us was still there, my emotions couldn't reach him and I didn't know what to do...there was no time...and I couldn't do anything to save him...

"Your reaction is understandable; your inexperience doesn't allow you to be sure of..." I collapsed before he could finish the sentence: I covered my face with my hands and began to cry softly; I could unburden myself quietly in my room, and instead I remained in the corridor to tremble like a child; there were no words to describe how I felt, and my head was a whirl of confused thoughts; I was embarrassed, but I couldn't stop my tears.

I stood there, alone, for an indefinite time; and then the sound of his purr filled my ears. I felt the arms of Ne'veah around my body, and his hand gently pushed my head against him, caressing me gently. I removed my hands from my face and leaned my forehead on his chest; my body didn't stop shaking, the nightmare came back again and again. Ne'veah remained silent and continued to purr, but I was tired of this silence, this misunderstanding between us...Elise was right: words alone weren't enough...if you didn't know how to use them; I always told Ne'veah what I felt, but I never tried to explain it. I did as he had taught me: I closed my eyes and tried to ignore everything around me, concentrating just on the rhythm of my breathing and his purring; my body continued to tremble, but gradually I managed to control my sobs; I could get away from him, but I didn't, I didn't want to do it

"...Are you okay?" he asked

"No, it's frustrating, you know?" I replied; his mandibles clicked, I continued "it's the second time that I can touch you only because I'm crying; I wish I could do it every day, normally, but I'm afraid to bother you, because I don't want to impose my feelings, because you can't understand them, but..." I sighed "since I met you, I realized that to remain at your side makes me happy; I like talking to you, or if we do something together…I simply realized that I can't stay away from you, and for this I am terrified of losing you: if...if you died...I'd die with you, because nothing could give me the happiness that you give me..." I placed my palm on his chest "I don't know if my words can help you to understand, but this is what I feel when I say that...that I love you and that I would give my life for you: you are a part of me, and if you would go away I would live only half" I couldn't hold back some tears "and I feel this even if you don't want me here or you don't feel the same for me" I raised my head and looked at him "for what it's worth: I love you, Ne'veah" I lowered my head and I wiped the tears; I had exhausted my stock of courage. Ne'veah arms were still around my body, but he had stopped purring; his mandibles clicked frantically and I wondered if he was surprised, frightened or nervous; well, I couldn't really do anything now. I tried to get away, now ready to return to my room, but he held me back

"...a part of you, be with you" he repeated

"...Yes, but you are not forced to accept it if you don't want" I said shyly; Ne'veah gently grabbed my chin and I looked up, my eyes met his

"When I'm with you" he began to say "I never know what is right or what is wrong to do, and there are still many things that I don't understand" his purr filled my ears again "I just know that I want to repay you for what you did for me, and now, thanks to you, I know what to do"

"Don't worry about th..."

He kissed me.


	15. Us

_15\. Us_

It wasn't really a kiss, he had no lips and I could feel his teeth on my mouth; yet my body froze instantly, the tense muscles and stiff like a violin string, while millions of electric shock passed through me from head to toe and my heart was beating so fast that I almost believed it was at times to exit from the chest; the emotion was so strong that I stopped breathing, and the only thing I could do was look at him with my eyes wide with surprise; I was able to bring the air in my lungs when he moved away, keeping me in his embrace

"Do you feel better now?" he asked; I was looking at him, dazed and shocked, and it took me a few seconds to take note of what had just happened; I opened my mouth to speak, but...

"W-wha...how-why... **EH?!** " I went into total panic, my face red and burning; Instinctively I touched my lips, and that gesture only worsened things "w-w-what the hell was going through your head?!" I exclaimed shrilly, without thinking too much about the words I was using; Ne'veah cocked his head to one side, looking doubtfully

"I saw Elise and Ate'yo do it a lot of times and I have learned that it's a human gesture that expresses affection; I thought it was the most appropriate way to meet your feelings and to repay you adequately"

"B-but-but..." I didn't know what to say or do, I was still too shocked to think rationally, my emotions totally out of control "I don't know, I mean...I..." my arms were shaking visibly and I couldn't find something on which to focus my gaze; my head was a whirl of confused thoughts, one less useful of the other

"Why are you so nervous?" he gave me a confused look

"W-why?! You kissed me!" I exclaimed, perhaps screaming too much

"You liked it, I can smell it, but your actions say otherwise; I don't understand" his mandibles clicked nervously, while a low growl made me understand his frustration. Talk wasn't so easy: how could I explain it? From my mouth came only a stream of nonsense words and shame was devouring me; I heard him sigh deeply and when he suddenly grabbed my face with one hand I thought he was nervous; Ne'veah forced me to look into his eyes, the closeness between us made me blush

" _Calm down_ " he ordered "if I'm doing something wrong, you must tell me, if you want to ask me something you have to ask; talk to me, Jessica, or I can't understand what you're feeling"

I swallowed quite a punch of saliva and nodded, taking a deep breath to calm down; it wasn't an easy thing, I was afraid to make mistakes, but I had to try

"Do you just want...repay me? Just this? Do you really think I might feel better knowing that you're trying to understand my feelings only to return a favor?" he looked at me surprised

"It's not so, I want really understand your feelings, when I saw you cry I thought that kissing was a way to make you feel better, and show my gratitude"

"You kissed me because you had to do it, because I have helped you a few times so it was a way as any to repay me...or because you wanted to do it, because you were sorry to see me like this?" Ne'veah didn't answer, his mandibles clicked nervously; maybe it was both, but I really wanted to know if he had feelings for me, even just affection, even just a little bit...I sighed looking at his hesitation, obviously he couldn't answer; I tried to get away from his embrace, feeling the need to stay alone, but he held me back, continuing to keep my face

"Probably...I can't understand the difference; teach me" he asked; I looked at him surprised, unsure of what to do; I wanted to kiss him, but I was afraid of ruining everything, but maybe I will not have other opportunities in the future...never again...well, there was a big difference between kissing without emotions and kiss for love, so...

"Close your eyes" I said, and timidly pressed my lips on his mouth; I felt him retreating slightly, but I leaned forward to not break contact; in this kiss I put all the love I feel for him, all my affection, all of myself; please Ne'veah, feel my love. Instinctively my hands reached his face, and while one stroked the outline of his right mandible, the other couldn't resist grasping one of his dread and stroke it for its entire length, over and over again. I timidly pressed my body against his, and I felt his purring, provoking a chill between my legs; I let my tongue slip into his mouth, eager to discover the taste.

I continued to kiss and caress him for an indefinite time, while my body was getting hotter and eager to him; unexpectedly I felt his tongue, long and thin, exploring my mouth, and his arms tighten around my body. That tender kiss turned into something else, as the excitement took over; I didn't know if it was the right thing to do, but fuck it, he was here with me, I couldn't wish for anything else. When we separated slowly, we had both the breathing quickened; my heart pounding as I looked at him with a gaze full of love and desire; I could see in him a mixture of emotions, but I couldn't know what was going on inside him

"Well, err...as you can see is not the same thing" I said, embarrassed; he said nothing, continuing to look at me, so I continued "Perhaps we should rest, sleep may help..."

"We should..." he repeated; his right hand reached my cheek, the index stroking my skin, then sliding on my lips; and to my surprise he kissed me again, intensely; his purring grew louder, while an unusual musky odor filled my nostrils; I couldn't help but moan softly, and when we separated I panted excitedly; this time it was me who didn't understand his behavior, why he was doing it, but god, it was amazing

"Jessica" the way he said my name sent a shiver down my body

"...Yes?"

"...Mate with me"

The passion exploded like a bomb; our mouths rushed against each other in a kiss that took my breath away, our tongues entwined like snakes of fire; Ne'veah let out a roar that vibrated against my body, grabbed my butt and lifted me off the ground, holding me tight. I wrapped my legs around his waist and arms around his neck, sinking the hands in his dread; I heard the automatic door of my room open and Ne'veah flung himself inside, straight to the bed; we lay down without stop kissing; pressing one against the other. Ne'veah towered over me with his muscular body, and I felt his claws sliding on my skin, his rough touch on my breast, stomach, between my legs...I panted heavily, my mind so clouded with pleasure that I couldn't even control the rhythm of my breathing.

He did what he wanted, tasting my skin with his tongue, touching me everywhere; he undressed me completely and I felt his fingers explore my opening, causing me sparks of pleasure and making me squirm under him, his thumb that tested the sensitivity of my clit. I realized that he had removed his loin cloth only when I felt his erection rubbing against me; curiosity led me to look at his manhood: it didn't seem very different from that of a human being...except for the size. Ne'veah spread my legs and positioned his cock at my entrance, slowly beginning to enter inside me; a jolt of pain and pleasure hit me, sparking a flame inside my chest

"Your walls are so tight..." he panted and growled, his hand roughly grabbed my neck and held me firm, forcing me to accept every inch of him; I opened my mouth but no sound came out, a sensation so strong that took my breath away. He was rude, dominant, and I liked it. Ne'veah moved his hips back and then again inside me, roaring, starting to pick up the pace; soon the pain became pure bliss, while his claws grabbed my hips and pushed me against him, faster and faster, louder and louder; my moans grew louder and my panting increased, arching the back like a cat to enjoy even more of that wonderful torture.

Suddenly he leaned up on his knees and lifted me up with him, moving my body up and down on his massive cock; I grabbed his shoulders and cried with pleasure but Ne'veah silenced me with a kiss, growling like a beast; he pushed me deeper down on his erection, panting and roaring against me, continuing again and again. An explosion of pleasure burst inside me, the orgasm shook my entire being, causing me tremors of violent shivers throughout my body. Ne'veah stopped slowly pushing inside me and made me lie on the bed gently, slipping off his cock and giving me time to catch my breath; our eyes were fixed on each other, and I would have liked to tell him that I loved him, that he was the most important thing in the world for me, but I didn't have the opportunity; he made me turn on my hands and knees, and with a single thrust was again inside me, pushing even deeper

"Oh, **shit!** " I cried, biting the furs with teeth; he growled and grunted, leaning toward me until his chest touched my back, without stopping for a moment to hammer inside me; I felt the tip of his teeth on my shoulder, ready to sink into my skin...but Ne'veah didn't' bite me, abruptly withdrew his head and grabbed my hips with his claws, continuing to fuck me without mercy. I lost track of the time, he seemed insatiable, and the sound of flesh slapping against flesh, combined with his roaring, was driving me crazy; again a shiver ran through my body, ready to release another orgasm; his muscles tensed, the pace became faster

"AH! Yes...f-faster...I'm cumming, _I'm cumming_!" I cried, cumming on his cock and wetting it even more; Ne'veah roared ferociously, and abruptly came out from me, dirtying me with his seed. I collapsed on the bed breathless, my legs shaking and so tired that I couldn't get up; helping me with arms I managed to look back to him, his magnificent body that still towered over the mine; our eyes met

"...I..." he tried to say something but stopped, unable to continue; there were no words to describe what had just happened. I weakly lifted my arms to him, inviting him to come closer, and hugged him tenderly, while Ne'veah enveloped our bodies in furs, lying beside me. I rested my head on his shoulder and we remained silent for a while, my hand tenderly stroking his abs and playing with small spikes on his chest; perhaps he wasn't used to that kind of attention but didn't even seem bothered; I wondered what he was thinking in this moment, I didn't know why he decided to make love with me; maybe it was just instinct...but I didn't want to think about it, I just wanted to enjoy his company, I didn't know how long it would last...

"How do you feel?" I decided to ask, but I already knew the answer

"...confused, I lost control, I didn't feel the need to mate and have children but..." he shook his head and turned to face me "and you've accepted me even though I haven't offered any trophy, and I'm a traitor"

"Please, don't say that" I raised my head to lay small tender kisses on his lower mandible "well, for me you are the best trophy I could get" I giggled, blushing a little "maybe you need to sleep on it" he said nothing, just wrapped my body with one arm and closed his eyes; I settled better on his shoulder, feeling the absolute need for sleep

"I love you, Ne'veah" I whispered, before sinking into sleep.

When I woke up, I believed not find him at my side, and instead he was still here, his arm still around my body; he was already awake, and was staring at me

"Good morning" I said, yawning

"Good morning" he said, stroking my head and then my cheek; I smiled, kissing shyly his chest. We took a bath of hot water, washing each other, and made a hearty breakfast; time was short, we would have to prepare for the mission, to be prepared for what awaited us...but it all seemed a distant memory. We talked a lot, nothing important, and stayed together all the time; for a while Ne'veah sat on the chair in the control room and made me sit on his lap, watching with me the space in front of us; the hours passed inexorable, and we continued to enjoy the company of the other; something I will not forget as long as I live.

Reality came back to disturb us as soon as the computer informed of our imminent landing on the planet; mechanically we prepared for the mission, Ne'veah pointed to the armory and then went to get his armor; I returned to my room and wore Elise's armor, feeling surprisingly calm and focused; we would return back, Ne'veah would be safe, and I would have been able to stay at his side, no matter how or in what way; I would also like to return to Earth to see my mother and my friends, to tell them I was fine and I was happy; and while I thought this, I went to take up arms, wearing the forearm with the blades and activating the gun. I was about to leave the room when I noticed a number of knives hanging on the wall; probably it wouldn't help much, but I took one and hid it in the piece of armor on the right calf, thinking that perhaps could be an added protection. I walked into Ne'veah's room and saw him attempt to take his spear and fix it behind his back; I admired him in all his beauty, the armor made him even more fascinating; he turned and came towards me, the gaze impassive; we were ready.

Our spaceship landed on the planet; if everything had gone as planned, the invisibility had covered our arrival. Ne'veah and I headed to the landing door, ready to go out and start our operation; I looked at him a few times, his eyes were deadly serious, his walk firm and secure; we arrived front of the huge metal door and he was about to open it...but stopped. Ne'veah turned to me, looking at me intently

"What's wrong?" I asked puzzled

"...I want to protect you" he said

"Oh, thanks" I said, blushing

"I mean, I really want to protect you" he approached me and patted my head "Not because you saved my life, not because you are fragile or inexperienced, but because I want to do it, although it's hard to explain why"

That confession left me speechless; I didn't think he would have never admitted or would have understood a feeling like that, and yet he did it, though not completely

"Thanks Ne'veah, really" I didn't know what else to say, I just gave him the brightest of my smiles; he leaned toward me, putting his hand behind my neck and pulling me towards him

"Jessica..." he opened his mandibles and kissed me gently, a gesture that I wouldn't have expected from him; I threw my arms around him and I abandoned myself to that kiss, thinking that I could die happy now; when we separated I stared at his beautiful eyes; I smiled and...

"Forgive me" he whispered. A sharp, terrible pain pervaded my neck; my vision blurred instantly and I lost control of my body; I didn't have even a chance to talk, it all happened too fast; I fell forward, and everything went black.

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Hi! Sorry for the long wait; I'm having some difficulty to express the emotions of my characters, so if you find that something is not very consistent let me know :) like the last time I want to answer to some reviews; I'm thinking that maybe I can do it often, tell me if you think it's a good idea :)

Guest: not just two children and first love...it is much worse, lol!

Brarga blag: tease? in what sense?

StrawberrySweetCakes: I hope you find it to your liking :)

CheebieBeebie: I'm glad you like the story so much, thank you!


	16. Courage

Hiiiiii! So here we are with another chapter, sorry for the long wait. Anyway I can't stop to thank you for your support, I'm glad that you like my story :) I think now I'm a bit more used to writing in English, but I still have difficulties to check mistakes or some types of words. I was considering the idea of asking for help from a beta reader, but if the errors aren't many perhaps I can also try to correct them alone. What do you think? Perhaps it is sometimes difficult to read? Give me your opinions, so that I can make a decision :)

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 _16\. Courage_

When I woke up, my vision was still blurry and my head was spinning, provoking me nausea; I waited patiently while the nagging feeling went away and slowly sat up, rubbing my temples: I was in my bed, in my room on the ship; turning the head I saw beside me a plate full of fruit and a jug of water, then my eyes scanned the room, as if looking for something; I felt terribly confused and tried to remember why I was there; the landing, the weapons, the tailgate of the ship in front of me, Ne'veah's kiss...the memory came back like a bolt and pierced me, taking my breath away

"Ne'veah" I said his name and looked around frantically, as if I expected to find him near me "Ne'veah?" no answer; I tried to call him again, nothing; my heart began to pound in the chest and breathing quickened sharply, as my body started to shake with terror; I looked on me and only then I realized I was still wearing my armor, but the weapons were gone; oh Christ...

"NE'VEAH!" I cried out with strength and jumped out of bed, running to the door of the room; something held me back, I tripped and fell tumbling to the ground, knocking violently on a side; I groaned in pain and slowly used my arms to lift me off the ground, looking at my legs; my eyes widened in surprise: a chain imprisoned my right ankle, too short to allow me to even get close to the exit. I couldn't believe it, I don't want to believe it; he made me this...that-that… _asshole!_

I grabbed the chain with both hands and pulled with all my might, needless to say it was no use; I approached to bed to see where it began and causally found a metal basin below it; I watched that object nothing short of amazed, I really had to pee in there?! I tossed aside the basin, the anger that was quickly taking over. The chain was wrapped tightly around a strong ring of unknown material embedded in a side of the bed, and something told me it wouldn't be so easy to remove it; but I didn't give up and did everything possible: I tried to remove the ring, unscrewing it, even tried to use the basin to break it or break the chain, but there was nothing to do; maybe I lost hours trying to free myself, and the more I tried the more my frustration increased

" **Ne'veah if I find you I'll kill you!** " I cried out of anger, while I hit a last time the chain with the basin and then prostrate myself to the ground, exhausted. I covered my face with the hands, desperation stronger than anything; my mind was thinking about only one thing: he had abandoned me, he promised that he would never let me back, that we would have solved this thing together...

"Don't go away, I need you" I said as if he could hear me. I began to cry uncontrollably, the pain in chest so excruciating that stole the breath; I felt angry, sad, but also frightened; now he was out there, all alone, to risk his life for a crime he didn't commit, and I wasn't with him. I snuggled and brought my knees to the chest, continuing to vent my pain; and in that moment I felt an abnormal bulge on the calf, my arm pressed against something unusually flat and solid; I suddenly remember what it was

"The knife" I whispered; I hadn't told Ne'veah I took it and he hadn't noticed it; what a stroke of luck! Surely it was much more useful than a stupid basin. I took out the knife by armor and began to repeatedly hit the chain, trying to focus strokes in one place; hope returned to revive me, in some way it was working. When I managed to free myself, my arm ached from the effort, but I was finally able to leave that fucking room.

The first thing I did was to retrieve my weapons and the device on the wrist; Ne'veah had shown me only some of its functions and one of these was how to stay in contact, so I tried to trace his signal, but OBVIOUSLY it didn't work; in addition to this, the device allowed me to display a mini three-dimensional map of the enemy city, so I couldn't get lost; and now that my mind was free from the anger this gave me pause: perhaps he really wanted to involve me in his plan, but something had changed; he said he wanted to protect me seriously, because he wanted to, not because he had to...whatever was his motivation, only one thing was certain: as soon as I found him, I would have filled him with slaps! And then kisses.

I decided to eat and drink what I had found in my room, not knowing if I could take some refreshment again; I turned off the device that gave me oxygen and quickly put on the mask that Elise had given me, allowing me to make use of invisibility; at that point I was ready.

Exit from the ship was easier than expected, it was enough for me to activate the emergency button near the gate to get it open; as I put my foot on the ground, the spacecraft closed again behind me and became invisible; I hoped to be able to find it again after completing the mission, hoping to still be alive. The environment was like Ne'veah had described and not much different from what I had seen on Elise's planet: a dense forest of trees and bushes that made the heat and humidity even more oppressive; fortunately there was still lot of light, but not knowing the planet I didn't know how much time I still had.

I check the map on my device and established a direction to take, hoping not to get too out of the way; I looked again the landscape: I knew that what I was doing was crazy, that was rationally something stupid and foolish, but I wasn't going to wait a second longer in the ship, not knowing he was out there fighting and that as time passed the distance between us was getting bigger. And so, with my heart in my throat, I activated the invisibility and I entered into the forest, walking quickly but without running to avoid making noise and save energy; I wasn't a warrior, I wasn't a huntress, only a human eager to see his beloved Yautja; and it didn't care what I had to face, I would do anything to be at his side.

I realized I had took the right direction as soon as I began to glimpse some of the metal structures in the distance; I felt a little tired, maybe I had walked more than I thought, but that vision gave me a glimmer of hope, pushing me to speed up the pace: I hadn't found Ne'veah, but maybe I was approaching him. Funny, I was practically throwing myself into the arms of death and yet I was happy to have come this far. I kept walking until I saw the buildings of the city in front of me and only then I stopped, remaining well hidden into the forest; I had to make a decision: Ne'veah could also have started the mission alone, but I didn't have to assume that he had already infiltrated in their area; the best thing to do was try to find him along the borders before jumping into a mission that certainly I wouldn't have been able to fully confront alone; and so I went back into the forest; the invisibility wasn't a problem, our armor were fine-tuned to give us the opportunity to recognize us each other.

I advanced slowly through the thick vegetation, the senses on alert as far as possible; the first meeting was the worst of all: a Yautja, probably a guard of the clan, was supervising the surrounding area, the gun and knives unsheathed; he moved slowly and headed east, cutting my way. My body froze instantly, terrified to the point of not even have the courage to run away; I knew perfectly well that I was invisible, but I also knew that this didn't make me invincible nor could banish the terror of imminent danger; fortunately, the only thing I had to do was stand still and motionless, waiting for his passage; I will never forget the sigh of relief that I made right after; I was really getting in a deep trouble, and yet not be discovered instilled in me a little courage, pushing me to continue, although more cautiously.

On the way I happened to meet other Yautja guarding the area, and although the fear continued to torment me, somehow the distance and a good dose of luck allowed me to move away from them without much trouble. After an indefinite time I was still walking around the city, and I began to seriously consider the idea of exploring it when suddenly I had to stop: two Yautja emerged from the bushes and came in my direction, the weapons always within reach; they were definitely too close compared to where I was, but as each time I tried to keep as much control as I could, continuing to repeat that they couldn't see me, and even though my body was shaking with agitation I forced myself to crawl slowly near a tree, by adhering my body to its bark and remaining perfectly still.

The two warriors went to my side and went over, my heart quickened the beats when one of them stopped shortly after, looking around and snapping his mandibles; I covered my mouth with hand to muffle my breathing accelerated and continued to watch that Yautja with eyes full of terror, while I saw him move slowly around, passing so close that he could almost touch me. He still scoured the area for a long, interminable minute, until he just growl and go back the way he had come. I began to slowly move around the tree, using the trunk as a shelter; I waited until the only sound that I felt was the wind in the trees and only then I leaned my back to the tree and pulled yet another sigh of relief, relaxing the muscles.

The stroke came so fast that I didn't have time to do anything: from nothing two blades stuck in the trunk of the tree, passing several centimeters above my head; and then he appeared: a guard deactivated his invisibility and roared furiously. A rush of terror hit my body, petrifying me instantly; the invisibility was no longer useful, now I no longer had a place to hide myself; I had just made a big mistake: I had screamed, now he knew I was there.


	17. Truth

oooooooh, finally I posted another chapter! I hope you like it! Thanks as always to Cityhunterluv, CheebieBeebie and "Write more soon" for the support, and thanks to Onitsu Blackfeather for the feedback ;) Enjoy!

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17\. _Truth_

At that moment I did the only thing that anyone would do: I escaped, running as fast as I could; I heard the Yautja roar still behind me and start the chase; though he couldn't see me, the sound of my footsteps was more than enough to keep up with me. The fear took possession of my body, I didn't know neither where to go nor how to hide my tracks; the only thing that came to my mind was trying to run without a clear direction to confuse him, but in my heart I knew it would be useless.

The explosions started shortly after, the Yautja shot several times with the gun in an attempt to hit me and this did nothing but scare me even more; my mind froze completely, I just wanted to wake up from this fucking nightmare.A shot ignited a tree near me and instinctively I jumped to the side, stumbling and falling to the ground, screaming in despair; I didn't even have time to get up that the Yautja attacked, cutting the air with his claws trying to catch me; I started to crawl on belly in an attempt to escape, but his hand grasped firmly my hip, the claws that tore flesh. I shouted in pain and fear, while the Yautja kept me stuck on the ground with one hand and with the other touched my body until arriving to my face; his fingers wrapped tightly on my mask, tearing it away by force. I became immediately visible, but that was the least of my problems: the air began to abandon my lungs; the oxygen was insufficient in that atmosphere.

The Yautja made me turn sharply toward him, growling menacingly. I couldn't do anything but stand still looking at him, panting heavily and unable to hold back tears; his mandibles snapped several times, as he leaned over to me and removed his mask, showing two deep and menacing yellow eyes; he came so close that his lower mandible could touch my face and inhaled deeply; in that moment I realized: my smell, he had found me because he had sensed my smell. A sound of footsteps caught his attention and another Yautja arrived at his side; they began to speak in that language incomprehensible, perhaps in consultation with one another.

I looked both terrified, my eyes that passed quickly from one to another in a desperate attempt to understand what would happen to me; and after minutes that to me seemed centuries, the Yautja which had captured me took my mask and put it back on my face, loosening his grip on me. Finally oxygen returned in my lungs; I coughed heavily, but I had no time to recover, because the Yautja abruptly grabbed my shoulder, startling me, the tips of his claws pressed against my skin; my body was shaking uncontrollably, while that giant towered over me

"...Nih-onj-in?" he said, but I didn't understand and stared at him confused; he continued "El-lines? Rus-skiy? Es-pa-nol? _En-gli-sh_?" my eyes widened in surprise: those were all different languages, human languages, yet he seemed to know them; although scared, I nodded when he said the last word

"Why-are-you here?" he growled, and his eyes fell on my body; no, he wasn't looking at my body, but my armor; maybe...maybe that was why he hadn't killed me yet, because I was clothed like them. And now? I really didn't know what to do; I had to think of something, anything; I was here to save Ne'veah, not to put him in even bigger troubles; I was afraid to die, but I wanted to protect him, to prove that he was innocent; in that moment it occurred to me only one thing

"I must...I must talk to the Elders, it's important...i-it regards what is going on between the two clans; p-please, I just want to talk to them" I stammered trembling and expected their reaction; I wasn't sure they would believe me, but I hoped with all my heart. The two warriors looked at each other, and their mandibles clicked noisily; both turned back to me, and those few seconds of silence were the worst of my life. Suddenly one of them grabbed me roughly by the arm, forced me to pull myself up and started dragging me badly; my arm ached, and the wound on my hip still bleeding, but I didn't protest, let them take me away; in the end, one way or another, I was entering into their base, and yet a question didn't abandon my mind: Ne'veah, where the hell were you?

 _Some time later_...

Just entered in their headquarters, I have been deprived of all weapons, including the knife and the device on my forearm; they healed my wound and one Yautja escorted me through an endless series of corridors without telling me where we were going.

And as I walked, I looked around nervously, trying to orient myself; I felt completely lost: the primary objective of the mission was to enter the control room of the base to try to intercept some useful information to identify the bad blood; the other option was to find the messenger survived and question him, hoping that he had some connection with the traitors; only in extremis we would have inspected the dwellings of Elders, always hoping to find something. Victory or death, there were no other options. But without Ne'veah I couldn't do anything, and in any case no longer had any importance: now my only concern was to find a way to stay alive.

We went up on the highest floors of the structure, and the hunter forced me to enter one of the many rooms on the hallway; the environment wasn't very welcoming: around me I saw only weapons hanging on the smooth black walls, along with the skull of some large animal; there were no windows and the only element of decor worthy of note was a big table in the center of the room, surrounded by high-backed chairs. The Yautja beside me said nothing, simply turned and left the room, leaving me alone. I stood up for a moment, unsure of what to do, and I approached timidly to a wall for watching those skulls with some apprehension: generally I was fascinated by their world and all that concerned them, but this time it all seemed so...threatening...

"Ooman" that voice so deep made me turn abruptly, and I was petrified when I saw him: a gigantic, massive Yautja entered the room with heavy steps, looking at me intently; his skin was a pale cream-stained black, contrasting sharply with the pieces of red armor he was wearing; her long dreadlocks were richly decorated with feathers and jewels, and around his neck hung a necklace full of small skulls; a cloak of thick fur covered his shoulders, making his figure even more impressive. I looked at those deep amber eyes, and I had no doubt: I was in the presence of an Elder. I stood looking at him in amazement a few more seconds, then immediately I put my hand on the chest and bowed my head as a sign of respect; he bowed his head in its turn and remained silent, continuing to scrutinize me with those soulful eyes. Silence fell heavily into the room; I had no idea where to start and I was extremely nervous, but I decided to give it a try

"M-my respects, Elder, my name is Jessica and..."

"Traitor's mate" he said coldly; I could clearly see his muscles tense and his mandibles clicking nervously "I could rip your head without a second thought…" that statement sent a chill down my whole body and I looked away, unable to hold his gaze "...but, for your luck, an innocent is an innocent; I will not hurt, you have my word"

I looked up surprised, as he went to sit at the table "So it was true what the priestess Elise told me: you are a simple Ooman, helpless, weak and unable to fight" those claims touched a sore spot, irritating me, but I said nothing and continued to listen to him "Then why send you here? We already know everything there is to know and we have already given our response; no matter who will find him first, the traitor will die in any case"

"I-I came of my own free will" I lied, unable to do otherwise "I wanted to talk directly with you, hoping...hoping that maybe you would have decided not to kill Ne'veah; please believe me, he's not a bad blood; I spent some time with him, and I can assure you that I have never seen him act in a dishonorable way, nor has he ever lifted a finger on me, I beg you...maybe we can find another way, there must be another way, please..." I looked at him imploringly; the Elder set his eyes on me, serious and relentless; he seemed to really reflect on my words, but soon after he shook his head

"Our decision is immovable" that answer was like a dagger thrust straight into my heart; I knew very well that it couldn't be so easy, but here there was at stake the life of Ne'veah, and every denial approached him inexorably towards his terrible fate; and for this reason I couldn't give up

"Believe me; Ne'veah could never make a similar action without a valid reason"

"Our messenger has testified against him, he killed our companions with ferocity and escaped, the trials are clear"

"Maybe...maybe it's not exactly what happened" I tried to say "one must consider all the possibilities..."

"I know what you're going to tell me" he growled "and we have already discussed, how can you ask us to doubt of our warriors when the facts are so evident?"

"Have you tried to do some research? You risk of condemning and innocent Yautja..."

" **Innocent?!** " he growled louder "attentive to your words, Ooman, or I might think that your mind is corrupted by his lies more than I thought" I looked at him surprised, frightened and confused at the same time; our eyes met, his gaze dark and threatening against mine. It took a few seconds of tense silence, before the anger of the Elder slip away as it had arrived, recovering his composure

"Come back to your senses before it's too late; I don't know what that scum has told you, but if there's one thing I do know is that the bad blood are fools, cruel, and over time they sink more and more into madness; for all we know, he may have used you as the perfect excuse to give him the time to escape, maybe reach a colony of his fellow" I was astonished at his words, and a sudden rage came over me; the idea that Ne'veah had deceived me was simply ridiculous, not after all we've been through together, not after what he said; it wasn't possible, in any way

"It's not like this, he would never do such a thing" I said with conviction

"Ooman's mind is fragile" he replied "your feelings are easy to manipulate"

"There are actions that speak louder than words; he has always been close to me and..."

"Where is he?" he asked "if it is true what you say, where is he now?" those questions left me dumbfounded; in all honesty I'd like to know too; I was really convinced that Ne'veah was innocent, but how could I deny the reality of things? And in front of my silence the Elder said nothing, simply got up from his chair and looked at me, declaring my defeat. In that moment I realized that no matter what I said, he wouldn't believe me in any case. I looked at him with despair as he walked to the door he had entered, choking back tears of rage; it didn't matter, I would have found another way to save him...

"If there's nothing else you can go, Ooman, and report to the priestess that if she will continue to get in the middle, the war will be inevitable" he said; my eyes widened in surprise at the thought that went through my head: war, of course, how I could forget; it was enough just to find a scapegoat, the perfect excuse to start fighting, and at that point his clan would invade the planet of Elise

"...You're just fucking murderers" I said almost without thinking; the Elder stopped abruptly and turned to me, his eyes mixture of surprise and fury

" _How...dare you_ "

"How dare I?! _**How dare you!**_ " I shouted, unleashing my anger "Staining the reputation of another clan for your dirty purposes! Start a war for your lust for power! Sacrificing innocents and shed their blood! And you can define this honor?! _You are the real traitors!_ "

A complete silence came down in the room, broken only by my heavy breathing; our eyes were fixed on each other, both ardent and furious. The Elder walked away from the door and moved threateningly towards me, towering over me with his size, growling submissively and with the mandibles wide open; but I didn't care, and I held my gaze even when he slowly raised his hand over me, claws ready to strike; I waited for the shot, I wasn't afraid, not anymore.

And then he sighed heavily, gently placing his palm on my head. The gesture caught me totally off guard, and I looked at him with eyes full of astonishment

"I can't blame your ingenuity, as I imagined you don't know the whole truth" he turned away from me and sat back, inviting me to sit next to him; it was incredible: he looked completely different than just two seconds ago; I did as he said hesitantly, feeling tiny in that chair so big; I continued to look at him in disbelief and confusion, as he wearily began to speak

"The females of our species are precious: they give birth and grow our children, continuing our descent, in some cases become huntresses, demonstrating unmatched skills; and when you mate a female, protect her become a priority, but perhaps you already know that" he leaned toward me, resting his arms on the table "and therefore it's not tolerable in the strongest terms that they be harmed; _it's intolerable_...to kill one of them" and for a moment, just for a moment, a flash of sadness went through his eyes, disappearing as it had come; a slight tremor fill my body, now I was afraid to hear the rest

"Food is scarce, we need new territories just enough time to withstand these difficult times; so we sent messengers to the other clan to ask for their support; and one of them…was a female" he looked at me straight in the eyes "but you know what happened, you know what _he_ did" his muscles tensed so much that I could clearly see the veins pulsing beneath the skin; my heart started pounding from agitation; it couldn't be, it wasn't possible, it was just...

"He killed my daughter"

The horror overwhelmed me, but I wasn't ready for what he said after...

"He killed his _mate_ "


	18. I missed you

18\. _I missed you_

Li'ya. Her name was Li'ya. The Elder, called Sain'ja, couldn't tell how they met, but it wasn't forbidden that two members of different clans mated with each other, as is generally preferred to continue the lineage within the clan. But that was another story. Maybe I should have looked at him quite shocked, because Sain'ja called one of the guards and I was escorted into a large, comfortable room, making me bring something to eat and just telling me that I could stay as long as I thought necessary and that, at least for the moment, he wouldn't have notified my presence here to the other clan; a really nice gesture, considering that I had labeled him as "fucking murderer".

And now here I was, sitting cross-legged on this huge bed, wrapped in warm furs to heat the cold I felt inside, while my mind worked, relentlessly. The questions were so many that I get headaches; I was certain that Elise knew about this story, so why she didn't tell me anything? And Ne'veah? Why to hide something like that? And I could really trust this clan? What I had to believe? In other words: what the fuck was the truth?! And what could I do? Unfortunately the answer was as obvious as painful: nothing, absolutely nothing; I had no power to stop a war, nor shed light on what really happened; and my heart was consumed thinking about Ne'veah and how all the certainties I had about him had collapsed like a house of cards; I loved him, I really loved him, but it was possible to love...a murderer? And in sadness I thought of the sweet sensation of our bodies joined together, our mouths that were looking at each other, his warm embrace, and the pleasure of felling him really mine, before a possible end of all...hoping that maybe I could have find true happiness...

I collapsed on the bed, grief-stricken, while angrily wiped a tear from my face; I lost count of the times that I cried for him, and I wasn't going to show me weak again. I stood staring the vacuum to an indefinite time, the head now overloaded with thoughts, and unwittingly I fell asleep, now exhausted and disheartened.

Loud noises disturbed my sleep, pushing me to open my eyes: heavy footsteps running down the corridors, the metallic sound of armors, and furious roars that penetrated even the thick door of my room; I sat down with fatigue, still dizzy from that nap unwanted, and slowly slipped out of bed, heading for the exit. I felt unusually calm and empty, unable to think straight; perhaps an involuntary reaction of my body to stress, a last desperate attempt to not make me crazy more than I was already. I listlessly opened the door of the room and I looked out, and as soon as I turned my head I saw three Yautja running in my direction, the blades unsheathed and laser activated. Instinctively I snapped back and let out a surprised yelp, while they passed me at impressive speed, ignoring me totally.

That encounter unexpected woke me totally, and finally I began to wonder what was going on, while an alarm bell rang in my head; timidly I stepped into the hallway, looking both ways to figure out where to go when another figure came up with quick steps towards me, surprising me: it was a female Yautja, the reptilian skin black as oil that exalted even more her long dress, red as blood, richly decorated with carvings and small skulls; her height was impressive, I had never seen one so closely, and her eyes burned like two hot embers as she walked with head high and proud step. The surprise didn't abandon my eyes even when I looked away and stepped back, almost as if the space wasn't enough to let her pass; and foolishly I wondered how it was possible to compete as a beauty like that, if...if Li'ya was so beautiful...before she was killed...

"Ooman"

The imperious tone of the voice startled me and I looked up; that Yautja was staring right at me, that look that seemed to pierce the soul. I gulped and made a slight bow, as she still continued to look at me before saying

"Follow me" and continue walking down the hallway. I didn't know whether to be more fascinated or intimidated by her, but in any case I obeyed without thinking twice, trying to stay as far as possible at her side, almost forced to run to keep up with her; it was very difficult for me to be able to speak, but my usual impatience took over

"May I ask where we're going?" I asked in a soft voice

"You already did it" she replied in a firm voice, continuing to move forward without looking at me, making me feel embarrassed; she seemed very tense, and I understood why when she told me "the traitor is here, and is forcing us to talk to him"

The joy and concern mingled together, preventing me to express both the one and the other; Ne'veah was here, I had finally found him, and his absence had been a torture more than I wanted to admit, despite the time elapsed since our separation wasn't that much; maybe we could finally put an end to this story, but I didn't like at all the idea that he was here in the den of wolves, nor I understood what she meant by "forcing". I was about to ask for explanations when she quickened her pace, forcing me to do the same. We crossed a large metal door and I found myself in a huge room with a high ceiling, and held my breath for what I saw: Yautja warriors everywhere, their faces hidden by masks and weapons ready for any eventuality; Sain'ja was among them, his gaze fixed on another closed door on the other side of the hall, while two other Elders were seated on two large benches and watched the scene, their faces tense and menacing; the female Yautja stood apart on one side of the room and I with her; Sain'ja turned to look at us, and his eyes crossed with that of the female; perhaps she was his mate, Li'ya's mother...

At that moment the other door opened and Ne'veah made his entrance. My heart stopped, my smile faded: imprisoned in his arms there was another Yautja, smaller and probably younger than him, and he held a knife pointed at his throat. Now I didn't know really what to think, when I saw him move between all the armed warriors, growling at anyone who tried to approach him and dragging that poor Yautja as if he were a toy, keep pressing the knife against him at every movement not wanted; our eyes met, and his eyes didn't let transpire even the slightest emotion, almost as if he wasn't surprised to find me here, almost as if he didn't care...Ne'veah stepped up to a few meters from Sain'ja; the two looked at each other in silence for a few seconds before starting to speak in their language, loud enough so that everyone could hear, the hard expression of the Elder against the impassive face of Ne'veah. My eyes continued to switch between them, the impatience that was literally killing me; It was useless as I might, I would never be able to understand a single word; I turned to Sain'ja's mate, remained silent watching them; I hoped that she would listen me

"What...what are they saying?" I asked pleadingly

"That scum is still trying to convince us to look for the bad blood between our troops; his madness is now unrecoverable" her tone was so hard it would have shaken a grown man

"Please, maybe you should listen to him, we don't know if ..."

" **Ooman!** " she growled, and her hand grabbed me under the chin with such speed that I had no time to back away in fright; she forced me to stare Ne'veah, kneeling beside me and hissing in my ear "You don't know the laws of this world. Take a good look, because of him and his lies two brave warriors have died and two clans are on the brink of a war, all for the benefit of his lurid race; he comes here to proclaim his innocence, but with weapons in his hands; get rid from the veil that tarnish your eyes and see things for what they really are: no longer a Yautja, but only a fool who is trying to turn us against each other to satisfy his thirst for blood; and now he is cornered, comes here hoping to trick us again. How can you still see something good in him?"

Every word was a stab in my heart; maybe it was just stubbornness, all the evidence seemed against him, but I didn't want to give up yet, I hadn't heard what he had to say

"If he really is trying to find a way out...then why he came here? Why he has come to those who are trying to kill him?" I asked; the Yautja remained silent a second before answering

"Maybe you should ask him, finally your doubts would find an answer and it would be good for many. The priestess Elise seems to firmly believe in your words, and her belief in the innocence of the Yautja called Ne'veah is what creates more friction between the leaders of each clan; if you stopped to defend him, then she should just step aside and accept his fate" and said that she stood up and put her hand on my shoulder, pushing me to follow her into the middle of the horde of warriors; she spoke in her language to Sain'ja and Ne'veah and both fell silent instantly, the expressions confused; the female placed her other hand on my other shoulder and set me straight in front of Ne'veah, pushing me a bit further ahead

"Choose well your questions, Ooman, there are many more things involved than you think"

I turned to look at her with surprise, while she just went to the side of his mate without saying anything else, waiting. I turned to Ne'veah, trying to take a little courage; now it was the moment of truth, at last we would have solved everything. I opened my mouth to formulate the first question, but from my lips didn't get out any sound; a shiver of fear ran through my body when my eyes met his: he was impassive, his expression unreadable, he was just waiting for my questions, nothing else, continuing to block other Yautja in his grip; at that time we looked like two strangers, and I wondered if it was the same Yautja I had known long ago, the same kind Yautja with whom I shared my home, my story, and a part of my life.

But I couldn't let me break down by the circumstances; yes, it was obvious, the situation was critical and there was no time for pleasantries, but...I was so happy to see him again, no matter how or how, I just...I just wanted...I would have proved his innocence and we would return back safe and sound, and we would have talked about our future...together _;_ for me it was impossible to forget, forget all that he was for me, and the fact that at last he was there with me, his face, his icy eyes, those eyes so beautiful...I sighed relieved and smiled, surprising him; I wouldn't let all this changed my emotions

"I missed you" I said softly.

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As always, thanks to all the followers, favorites and reviwers that continue to support me :) Please don't stop to review, to give me your advices or opinions, they help me for my story, so continue to help me! And I hope you enjoy!


	19. Traitor

Hiiii! Finally another chapter! Sorry for the long wait but, you know, the end of work, the start of vacation...Have you spent a happy Christmas? I hope so :) Thanks as always for all the people that give me support and advices. Thanks to "B" and "LadyDeath01" for their last reviews, thanks to "write more soon" and obviously to my friend Cityhunterluv :) I hope you like it!

* * *

 _19\. Traitor_

"I missed you" I said softly. The silence fell in the hall; I didn't know if all the Yautja that were there could understand me, but I didn't care, I didn't really care; the only thing I wanted was to be able to speak with him again, with the sweet and kind Yautja that I knew, not with the stranger in front of me. Ne'veah tried to keep an impassive expression, but couldn't hide from his eyes the surprise for those words, spoken perhaps at an inconvenient time. I should have be angry with him (and maybe still a little I was) for letting me in his spaceship, moreover chained; yet the relief that I felt at seeing him obscured everything else...not to mention that now I had the full right to make him all the questions I wanted. I thought with amusement that was a bad idea to give such power to a woman, but now that I had the opportunity I had every intention to take advantage of it

"What part of _we will solve this thing together_ wasn't clear? Why did you leave me in the ship?" I asked; my voice tone was neither accusatory nor mocking, but I made him understand that I wouldn't accept silence as a response. Ne'veah looked at me straight in the eyes, shifting his gaze just a second to continue to monitor the Yautja trapped in his grip

"I didn't want you to come here, you would have been in danger and I...I couldn't allow that" he admitted. My heart melted hearing his confession, perhaps cost him a good part of his pride, but I had no time to formulate a response that Sain'ja's voice echoed in the hall

"Of course you couldn't allow that" he began, placing himself at my side "you would have lost the only excuse that remained to escape from your execution, the only witness who proclaimed your innocence without knowing what really happened" he turned to look at me "attentive to his words, he is trying to deceive you again"

"I'm telling the truth" Ne'veah growled submissively "she is not safe here"

"So I suppose that she is much safer with the monster who murdered my daughter" Sain'ja roared, pointing a finger at him "and that right now is taking prisoner a young hunter of my clan to force me to listen to his absurd demands"

"I had no choice; you would never have allowed me to speak so directly, I had to do it"

"Did you really think I would have listened? You, a Badblood?"

"I knew very well that it was crazy..." Ne'veah self-confidence wavered, then said firmly "but I wouldn't have given up to save her anyway" and his eyes focused intently on me, surprising me.

Silence fell again into the room; the tension almost unbearable. I began to feel really confused; there was really no danger here but Ne'veah continued to argue otherwise, while Sain'ja thought he was just trying to trick me; every time I looked at his beautiful eyes of ice I couldn't help but think of his innocence, yet they were too many things that he didn't tell me, things that he hid me, and I didn't understand why. Again, in what I had to believe? I took a deep breath, perhaps with the questions I will find the answer I was looking for

"Ne'veah, I need to hear it from you; if...if you really killed your mate I want to know why you did it" until the last I was hoping that he would tell me something different, that it was all a mistake and that the culprit wasn't him, but his answer left no doubt

"Yes, I killed her" his tone was so direct and emotionless that surprised me, almost irritated me, but he continued "but it was for the sake of my clan. Jessica, you must believe me, you can't even imagine how much a Badblood can be dangerous; I'll explain everything in due time but now all I ask you is to come away with me, this place is not..." Ne'veah stopped abruptly when a hand grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back immediately, scaring me; I turned my head sharply and saw that it was Sain'ja.

Ne'veah roared threatening but the Elder roared louder, advancing menacingly and placing himself in front of me, as if to protect me; I could clearly see the knife that Ne'veah held in his hands press firmly against the throat of the young hunter, letting a trickle of blood ran down his hand

"I will not let anyone hurt her" Ne'veah growled

"And I will not let a Badblood to take again an innocent life" Sain'ja roared in response.

It really seemed to be no way out, more blood would be shed, and two clans would have been decimated each other to defend what they believed. And although it was absurd, I felt that I was the only one who could find a solution to all this. Damn, it was absolutely ridiculous: until a few hours ago I was convinced that I could do nothing, but I was wrong. Maybe I didn't know what had happened, but if Elise and Ne'veah believed in me and Sain'ja was willing to listen to me, then maybe I was the only one able to find some sort of agreement, however difficult that might be.

I advanced towards Sain'ja intimidated, his body still tense and ready to attack, and for a moment I feared that if I had spoken his fury would be unleashed on me, but I had to give it a try. I didn't have quite clear what to say, but right now my priority was to try to reason with them; and so, slowly, I began to speak

"Elder Sain'ja, I can't understand the traditions of your clan, nor what it means to defend one's honor or that of brave comrades. But...if what you said is true, if it really want to save innocent lives, then please, don't let the war begin right now; if you have so much confidence in your warriors then surely there is nothing to hide, and...a simple inspection will not ruin anything" I remained silent to observe his reaction, but the Elder just stared at me, perhaps aware that I hadn't yet finished. I turned to Ne'veah, and my eyes fell on the young warrior trapped "Let him go, please; if there is Badblood here, I'm sure the Elders will find him. Ne'veah...stay with me, we will find another solution together..." the words died in my throat.

I couldn't decide for them, but actually it was a reasonable proposal, the one that came in my mind that could unblock the situation, at least for the moment. My eyes didn't stop switch between them, the anxiety that slowly devoured me, while the two Yautja continued to remain firm in their positions. And then, finally, Sain'ja relaxed his muscles and turned to the other Elders, speaking in his own language for just a few seconds. When he turned back, I held my breath with excitement

"You're lucky, Ne'veah, to have someone who believes in your innocence. I and the other Elders will search these Badbloods from top to bottom; I doubt that the danger is hidden in our walls, but if these are the conditions for your surrender, then so be it. Leave your weapons, and on my word you will not be hurt, we permit you to be confined in one of our residences together with your mate until the inspection will be completed; if it is true what you say, then you have no reason to fight anymore"

I took a long sigh of relief, while my heart was filled with joy. I thought that the Elders of this clan were too stubborn or proud to take a similar decision, but in the end they were just acting for the sake of their people; I wouldn't underestimate their wisdom anymore. I turned to Ne'veah, who still hadn't lowered his guard. I could understand it, for him it wasn't easy to trust them, but I was more than happy to help him. I approached him smiling, hands outstretched and ready to reassure him, but he instinctively stepped back

"You no longer need to worry; as you can see I'm fine" I said, almost laughing. Ne'veah stared at me intently, his gaze tense and nervous

"Jessica...please..."

"Forgive me Ne'veah" I said, and again the astonishment filled his eyes while I continued "I...I wanted to be even stronger; I wanted to do something more...to save your life. I know that the situation is not yet resolved, but now there is no need to use drastic measures; and...and if things don't work out...we will find another way, _I_ will find another way. I was desperate on the ship you know? I thought I would really never see you again, and...I may have accelerated the timing for something that wasn't yet ready; I don't know how things will end up...between us, just...let me help you, let me stay by your side, I told you right?" I gave him the best of my smiles "I would do anything to save you"

His gaze wavered; his grip on the young warrior went slack. I didn't know if it was really the end of this story, but I wanted to believe it with all my being; I wanted to hope that they would find that fucking bad blood and that finally we would be back on his...on _our_ planet. By now I was a few feet away from him, the hand raised to remove the knife from his hands. Our eyes met again, and again I smiled

"You said you wanted to protect me, and now you can do it" something changed in his eyes, and I thought he was about to give way "we just have to wait a while, it's not impossible" I reached out my hand "you'll stay here…right?" I whispered softly

"...No"

It all happened so fast that I didn't have even time to think. Ne'veah threw to the ground the young warrior violently, and activated the cloaking device, disappearing before my eyes. The roar of Sain'ja echoed for the entire hall, strong enough to shake the walls

" _ **HE IS TRYING TO ESCAPE! GET HIM!**_ "

Other roars joined to his, and the order maintained just a few seconds ago turned into total chaos, with the warriors who threw themselves at the center of the hall in an attempt to capture the fugitive.

But I didn't see what happened next. My legs collapsed and I found myself sitting on the ground, hands resting on the floor to hold me. My body was shaken by thousands of tremors, my heart was pounding so hard that the beats resounded in my ears, while the lungs were pumping air like crazy in a desperate attempt to get me to breathe. I was panting heavily, my mouth wide open, the screams suppressed in my throat, strangling me, choking me. I couldn't believe what had just happened; I gave him everything, everything, and yet...and yet...

"No...no...not…Badblood..." but from my lips went out only a rattle. I couldn't breathe; I couldn't breathe…air… _ **air**_! My vision blurred, my body slumped to the ground. And the worst of nightmares enveloped me, while everything went black.


	20. In the wolf's liar

_20_. _In the wolf's lair_

When I woke up, I found myself in the room that Sain'ja had reserved me. My body was weak and tired, but my head began to work immediately, bringing to mind the events of the last hours and the avalanche of emotions involved. Actually, in that moment, although my heart was about to explode and I had the insane desire to destroy anything I could find, so great was the anger and despair that I felt, I couldn't make the slightest movement, remaining lying on the bed and staring at the bright colors of furs that enveloped my body. I had reached the limit, now...I had come to collapse.

The only thing certain was that Ne'veah...my Ne'veah...had betrayed us, had betrayed _me_. There was no reason to reject the Sain'ja's accord, and even if there was any threat nearby to my eyes he had openly refused to protect me and decided to run away rather than stay by my side. I-I knew that in the end we weren't really close; a night of sex, driven more by the desire and fear of losing him rather than by love for his part, couldn't change things. And yet I had hoped that was the first step to build something solid together, a further demonstration of my feelings, the deepest love I felt for him and...even when I was there in that big hall, terrified because surrounded by a squadron of Yautja ready to slay everyone and everything, I have tried to give me courage to save him, I struggled just to give him a chance of salvation, ready to die in his place...but...

"Before starting this crazy mission, you said you wanted to protect me truly; did you lie even about that? Eh, Ne'veah?" maybe I should start to worry: ask questions without an interlocutor could be considered a first sign of madness, though perhaps I was already mad for a long time, since I decided to get on that fucking spaceship, or perhaps when my heart had chosen to follow a damned, wonderful alien with blue eyes like ice.

I got up slowly from the bed and went to wash my face, without stopping to think about what would happen now. My chest ached terribly, emotions eager to go out like a raging river, but by now I was too tired to continue to suffer in this way; I would not cry again, no more. The sound of a metal door caught my attention, and when I came out of the bathroom my gaze met with that of Sain'ja's mate, standing in the middle of the room. I felt a strange discomfort in find her here, but maybe I was afraid only for what she had to say. I bowed my head slightly without saying anything, basically I didn't even know her name, and I didn't care

"He managed to escape" she said, staring at me intently. I didn't know what kind of reaction she expected from me, but I just nodded without another word; it looked absurd, but at that moment I felt really nothing. She waited a few seconds before continuing

"There are no more doubts about his guilt, his open refusal to cooperate has fully exposed his lies; it's necessary to contact the other clan, and..."

"And what? Maybe you need a written permission?" I said, irritated. I knew immediately what they wanted to ask me: they needed my support to bring down the last defenses that Elise had erected for Ne'veah, then the two clans would have started together the hunt to find him, there would have been no war, and they lived happily ever after. It was right, it was logical, but they couldn't ask me, not now, because for me...there was no happy ending

"The loss of a mate is never easy, I can understand you" she said quietly, and those words made me mad like a beast "but you know that currently there are other priorities"

"The only thing I know is that you cannot understand a shit about how I feel! Nor you will ever understand that!" I exclaimed, almost screaming, the anger which slowly found a way to break free "because I am human, I am not like you! And I don't give a fuck about your problems, currently MY priorities are others! If you want to contact the other clan then do it, the only thing I ask is to be left alone for those few fucking hours I need!" I didn't have to cry, I-didn't-have-to-cry…The expression she made couldn't hide her surprise; probably I was the first person that dared to talk to her like this, a simple human against an Elder's mate. Two more seconds passed before she spoke again

"Fine, take your time and rest; the Badblood can't yet be so far away, so we'll continue to search him until he is in our territory. I'll make you bring some food, we'll talk later" she turned and was about to leave but stopped in front of the door and looked me in the eyes "It's true, we can't understand human feelings, I learned only few things from the priestess Elise; but we are not monsters, we can suffer, even if in a different way. Your mate has escaped, but my daughter is dead, don't forget it" and said that, she left the room. I sighed; she was right, I was just too much upset to admit it.

There was a table with only a big chair near it in the room; I sat down, staring at nothing, thinking about the future. I was afraid…no, I was literally terrorized. Probably, in these circumstances, Ne'veah will be killed, and even if I could stay in one of their clan, I didn't think I could stand it; but I couldn't even come back to Earth, trying to forget this cruel and wonderful world without the possibility to come back, or trying to forget him…but I loved him…a…Badblood.

I got up abruptly from the chair, feeling the urgent need to do something else; I started to walk nervously around the table, simply focusing my attention on my feet and breathing deeply. I lost track of the time, I felt this horrible sensation that if I stopped it would have been my end. No emotions, no emotions, no emotions…

And then again the automatic door opened, but I continued to walk around the table, unable to stop myself

"I'm not hungry thanks, please get out" even if my tone was hard, I tried to be as gentle as possible; it was useless get hungry with someone I didn't know. But when I noticed that no one was leaving the room, I turned to give an irritated look at whoever was there, and I couldn't hide a surprised expression when my gaze met with an unknown hunter who returned my stare. I have had just two seconds to observe him: he didn't seem old, so surely he wasn't an Elder, but I couldn't recognize his status because he didn't wear any type of armor or weapon, only a loincloth with a belt and sack tied on it and a pair of metal shoulder pads; his skin was a dark brown streaked with red, I couldn't say if it was a paint or not; one of his tusks was missing

"We have no time, Ooman" he started, looking around as to make sure no one else was inside "we need to cooperate for the sake of both clans" his voice was low and husky, and seemed to have a certain hurry, the fact that he talked in a perfect English didn't surprise me so much; it took me a few more second to formulate an answer

"If this is another way to convince me to take a decision, then you are more insensible than I tho…" he made me stop, growling submissively and spreading his mandibles

"If you want to see your mate still alive then you will do well to listen to me"

I remained silent to stare at him, evaluating his words. In truth, I didn't even know if I had to care or not care anymore; my feelings were still there, love and affection, but I was still so pissed off!

"First of all, I think you must give me some explanation, don't you? For example who are you and what are you talking about" I looked at him with suspicious eyes

"My name is Dachande, I'm the third messenger sent some times ago to stipulate a new agreement with the other clan, the one who saw Li'ya's and Yeyinde's death, killed at the hands of Ne'veah" his expression turned into a sneer when he saw my astonishment "I think I have your attention now, don't you?" said ironically. I felt a strange mixture of emotions: anger, irritation, sadness and confusion; me and Ne'veah had to search this bastard to find the answers we needed, and now he was right in front of me, offering me a very strange offer

"Let me understand well: you are the one that accused Ne'veah to be a murderer and now you are here to…save him?" his smile vanished immediately, the gaze deadly serious

"Don't misunderstand, his not part of my clan and I don't care what could happen to him" he advanced toward me, took the chair and sat on it, continuing to staring at me "but for now you and him are the key that can save my people from the destruction" when I turned him a questioning look he sighed deeply, lowering his gaze "I was…wrong; if you see a Yautja kill two of the same race the first thing you can think is a Badblood. How could I imagine that Li'ya was plotting something…" he looked at me again "…that _Sain'ja_ was plotting something, involving his daughter and perhaps even his mate; maybe Ne'veah knew this, after all Li'ya was his mate, but he refused to cooperate"

I was astonished to say the least; Sain'ja…was trying to conquer Elise's clan? Was he the Badblood? So now Ne'veah was the good guy? There was something wrong

"How can it be? This means that Sain'ja…has sacrificed his daughter…" as his mate, were they… only pretending to feel pain for their loss?

"A perfect excuse for declaring war, don't you think? But I think his plans were different, probably he was trying to conquer the other clan with Ne'veah's help, but you know how things we…" a sudden noise made him turn abruptly, then he looked again at me "I don't have much time anymore, if someone finds me here it would be a big problem. Listen, you two are an obstacle for him, he wants both of you here so he can kill you and feign your disappearance; in this way no one could stop the war anymore. First, we have to make you escape from here, you have to find your mate and stay safe; soon it will become dark, the perfect time to go away; then we'll think about something to stop him; I can help you from inside, but you have to cooperate with me"

I looked at him perplexed, too much information at once; and one single question

"How can I trust you?"

Dachande looked at me straight in the eyes, without answering. He simply took the sack at his side and opened it, taking something and giving it to me. My wrist gauntlet! He helped me to put it on my arm

"I programmed a map for you, it should be easier to escape; I can't help you directly, I could only choose the best way without many guards" he got up from the chair, his green eyes fixed on me

"…thanks" I murmured, almost blushing

"Don't be caught, or it will be the end…if you decide to leave" he started to walk away

"! But you said that if I stay here I will die"

"The choice is yours" he walked through the door that closed behind him.

* * *

This time I was able to post this chapter a little before than the last one. So? My question is: **what would you do in her place? leave or not to leave?** Let me know in your reviews!

ZabusasGirl: thank you! I did my best :)

Seraphon: thank you for your support :) I hope you like it!


	21. Break out

**First of all: THANK YOU! Unfortunately I don't have much time to write but I'm doing my best! I want to thank all the people who have commented on my last chapter, thanking them for their support. Your really helped me with this chapter! So let's start immediately to answer to your reviews, I'm sorry I didn't do it before**

 **-** Lady Ravanna: thank you! I'm happy you like it!

\- Guest: thank you!

\- kimah36: thank you for your patience and your reviews! And keep up with the good work!

\- CheeseyMonsterBoi: thank you for your support!

\- Redgrave: thank you for your review!

\- Cityhunterluv: hey, I have to thank you as always my friend! You are the inspiring muse of this story!

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\- rybkakoi: I don't have any intention to interrupt my story, I need only more time to write. Thank you!

\- Seraphon: thank you for your review! I'll do my best!

* * *

 _21\. Break out_

I stood on the bed for an indefinite time, continuing to look the device on my arm, as to find in it an answer. Leave or stay, once again a choice without a second thought, a choice that should have been examined only on the basis of the facts and had to take into account all the possible implication. Unfortunately I've never been a very rational person.

Leave. Definitively leave. I didn't know if it was the right thing to do; damn, I didn't even know in what to believe anymore! But...I wanted to see him, my Ne'veah, at least for one last time; my questions needed an answer and I wanted to hear them directly from him, and if I had to risk my life...if I had to die...so be it, at least I knew from the beginning that there was no guarantee to return back.

I waited patiently for an indefinite time, hoping that outside began to get dark; only when I really started to get bored I watched the wrist gauntlet, and then my gaze wandered around the room: I needed something to hide it. My attention went to the furs on the bed; I took one short enough to wrap it around my shoulder and hide my arms under it, then I tried to adjust it better around my neck, using the smooth surface of the walls as a kind of mirror: it looked like a long gaudy shawl, but I didn't have nothing better. I checked the map that Dachande had programmed, still hesitant to trust him or not, and memorized as much as possible the route: the place where I stood was vast and complex, but fortunately I just had to follow a long corridor to the right of my room and, after just a couple of turns, reach what I thought was a lift and move downwards. Probably without this information I would never be able to get out of this maze.

I opened my room's door and took a good breath, starting to walk along the corridor. Obviously I wasn't alone, there were few Yautja walking around the base; some of them seemed simply busy with their affairs, but others were clearly guards ready to break your head, wearing their masks and inspecting the area. I tried to go unnoticed, hiding myself in secondary passages, behind columns or equipment full of tubes. More I walked, the more my discomfort grew. I was literally terrorized to be discovered, I could only hope to act undisturbed as long as I could, at least to see how far I could go.

I turned slowly to the right, watching in the meantime the smooth wall surfaces as to find something, anything, that could help me to understand if it was getting dark or it was still too early; this place was so fortified that I couldn't find a single fucking window. I had to continue for several more minutes, and for a moment I almost thought to be lost, until I saw the elevator right in front of me. I looked around to make sure no one was nearby or was using the lift, then I got inside and the doors closed behind me.

I checked again the wrist gauntlet, making sure I was following the right direction, then I looked the number of buttons on the lift and almost I was surprised to be able to understand where was the "down" button; only because one thing is alien does not mean that it is not as many simple. And yet, a thought kept going through my head. Too easy. Surely I wasn't a big threat for them, but I was in their base, and for what little I knew about Yautja this was more than sufficient reason to be cautious even with a simple human; not to mention that for them I was a Bad blood's mate, and, as I have been told many times, the only person who could stop the war...or to initiate could be several explanations about it: Dachande could have allies, maybe he is helping me in some way or the guards were too much sure that I couldn't get out of here; but whatever was the reason, if it could help me to follow my priorities then it was fine.

Once arrived to the ground floor, the map guided me along a series of corridors on the right side of the building, pushing me more and more into its depths. The same scenery of before, too few Yautja around. I was starting to doubt my decision, but if I had to die, here or outside, at least it was me to choose how to do it, and I would have done it looking for what I wanted. I stopped just a moment behind a wall to see two Yautja exit from a door a little further on and waited for their passage, then I walked quickly toward the same door and went in, looking behind just for a moment to make sure no one saw me.

I felt immediately something different as soon as the door closed: it was warmer here, more than usual, and looking around I noticed that the walls were full of tubes pipes, consoles and valves. Hmmm, maybe I was in a sort of engine room? Well, if this meant less Yautja it was better for me. I continued to follow the map, but soon it became almost impossible to hide the gauntlet under the fur: too much warm, and the device that gave me oxygen didn't seem enough to make me breath regularly. I had to get out of here and immediately. I quicken my pace, the exit didn't seem too far from here; maybe it was a kind of emergency exit, in case something happen to machinery.

After a while I turned on the left, arriving in a small room surrounded by other consoles and monitors, and I made just in time to cover my mouth and hide myself in the corridor before a Yautja turned and discovered me. I waited a few seconds to recover from the shock, controlling my breath, before to try to look at him on the sly; he was checking the machines and seemed much focused on his work, and behind him there was another door. I checked the map, cursing silently; I had to pass that fucking door if I wanted to get out of here. The Yautja turned again to make other checks; I could easily ran behind him and reach the door, but it was all too obvious that was a bad idea...the only idea I had. I breathed deeply, ready to do this crazy thing, when a sound of footsteps made me stop. Oh Shit! Someone was coming!

My legs acted before my brain; heedless of the noise, I started to run back along the corridor, almost throwing myself in a secondary passage and instinctively pressing my body against the wall to avoid being noticed. Another Yautja passed without detect me, giving me the time to hide myself better. I stood there for an indefinite time, thinking about my next move, but with my surprise the two Yautja left the room, going back to the hallway and almost scaring me to death, with the fear of being identified. I continued to stand still for some minutes, then slowly I went again in that room, opening the last obstacle to my freedom. Only when the door closed behind me I started to run without looking back, eager to get out from here.

The cold night air hit my stomach, making me shiver; I wrapped the fur around my body and looked up, realizing I was on the back side of their base, before starting to run again. The light of two moons guided me inside the forest, but I had to hurry, I didn't know how long it would last; I had only two thoughts in mind: get away from here and find Ne'veah. I just could not imagine the scene; what will happen when I'll be in front of him? Will I find the answers I need? If Sain'ja was right...he didn't need me anymore… he will try to _kill_ me? _He?_ I…

It all happened too fast. Something grabbed me roughly by the calf, pulling me back. My yelp died in my throat when I tripped and my shoulder painfully hit the ground, the pain that reverberated in my limb as I continued to be dragged back. I was raised off the ground upside down, and finally found my lungs again the air they had lost, starting to scream with all the breath in my throat, shaking me like a possessed and hitting the air at random. My free leg kicked something hard and the grip on my leg loosened, making me fall again tumbling to the ground; I turned to look back, and although I could not see anything, it was impossible not to recognize the profile of a Yautja, invisible just two second before.

I heard his furious growls, and fear came right into my bones. In desperation, I began to crawl back as fast as I could, barely holding back sobs; I couldn't see where I was going, and the blade came even before I knew it. My scream echoed through the entire forest, so loudly that my throat burned like hell; I could no longer escape more, my thigh pierced from side to side from a big knife. It hurt, it hurt so much...and while I was crying from the pain, almost about to faint, I felt his hands on my face, taping my mouth, his grip ever closer...ready to take my head off...

A roar rose towards the sky, so loud that the earth seemed to tremble. Something, _someone_ , literally jumped on my assailant, knocking him down with a loud thud. Growls and roars filled my ears, while through my tears I could only see two shadows rush against each other with fury, rolling on the ground like a crazy spinning top. I try to focus my attention to my leg, and the sight of the blood scared me even more, the terror to bleed to death. Slowly my hand reached the knife, but it was enough just a little pressure to send sparks of pain all over my leg. The only thing I could do was to try to stand still as far as possible, using the fur like a bandage and, with terrible pain, press on the wound to stop the blood; I was sobbing and crying, trying desperately to make long breaths and calm down…as someone could remain calm in such a situation!

Suddenly I heard a whine, but it lasted only few seconds; then only a strangled cry…and then nothing more. My body started to shake uncontrollably, hearing the footsteps coming in my direction; I was too much scared, but I couldn't do nothing but look up, while finally the moonlight illuminated the shape in front of me.

Ne'veah.

He was himself...and at the same time he wasn't. Bathed in that light, he was breathing heavily, his body so covered with green and glowing blood that it was impossible to understand if it was his or not, his right hand that held the severed arm of the other Yautja. And his eyes, those eyes that I had always loved, shone like ice under the rays of the sun, so cold to penetrate into your soul. If the god of death had a face, then it was certainly this.

A sudden series of roars filled the air and he turned his head sharply toward the base of the clan, his dread that swayed to the movement. A sort of alarm system, I presumed. Ne'veah quickly bent toward me, and unceremoniously he grabbed my cheeks, forcing me to open my mouth and then placing a finger between my teeth. I barely had the time to realize what was happening that a tremendous pain pervaded my body and instinctively my teeth closed on his finger, crying and screaming. I only saw a sort of syringe and the knife that a few seconds before was in my thigh now was thrown there on the ground.

With the pain that still tormented my body and exhausted by the strong emotions , I was too weak to react, the head that was spinning terribly; and while he took me upon his shoulder and started to run fast in the forest, I stood there with my arms dangling, and only one thought in mind: he was my salvation…or damnation?


	22. Story

**Finally another chapter! Did you miss me? Well, we are arrived in the clue of the story and I again need your help. In this chapter I had to fight with the emotions of my charachters, something not so easy. I ask you to read the chapter very well and tell me what would you do in a situation like this, if the reactions are good and if you would acted in the same way of our poor Jess. And now time to answer to the last reviews! As always thanks to my muse Cityhunterluv:**

 **-** Seraphon: I did it finally! I hope you like it!

\- Lady Ravanna: I'm happy you continue to review my story! Each feedback for me is important!

\- Kimah: you help me very much with your reviews, I really need your opinion in this chapter!

\- DenKTM: babies...I have to ask them ;P

\- zRedgrave: thanks for your review and your message! 3

* * *

 _22\. Story_

He never stopped running, not even to catch his breath, jumping and climbing in the forest like it was nothing and without losing his grip on me neither for a second. Not that I really had the intention to go somewhere, especially now that I was with him again. I tried to see through the dense vegetation and the darkness of the night but obviously it was impossible for me; and yet I knew that someone was chasing us, so my questions would have to wait for their answers. I could only enjoy the warm sensation of my body that touched his; I didn't want to admit it, but I missed it too much...

We arrived to his ship in record time; Ne'veah opened the gate and ran inside, continuing to carry me through the corridors. Only when we reached the control room he decided to put me down, placing the torn arm of the other Yautja on a metal surface and heading toward the control panel. My leg still hurt a bit, even it wasn't a problem to stand, but nothing ached like my heart, for what I was looking: Ne'veah was sitting on his big control location, pressing an indefinite series of buttons and looking at the monitor in front of him, his haste evident; he was completely ignoring me, like nothing happened, like I was invisible; he was so close, and yet so far...A rumble resounded in the air, and the ship started to tremble. I looked around puzzled, then my gaze returned to him

"...what are you doing?" I asked, a little worried

"We are leaving" his simple answer

"...Ne'veah..." I tried to get his attention but he continued to ignore me. I moved some step forward, and the feeling was that of walking into a nightmare. I was scared, lost, frightened; and the only person I wanted with me, the only person I needed with me and that now was right in front of my eyes simply was acting like I was a ghost, nothing more than an annoying insect

"Please, look me" I begged him with trembling voice, but he wasn't listening, and the sound of the buttons he was clicking resounded in my head like a deafening noise "Ne'veah, _please"_ I tried again, and again my words fell on deaf ears. My emotions mingled in a raging whirlwind: rage, fear, love...together with the memories of the days spent with him, the landing, the meeting, Mark, the fight, the capture, Sain'ja..."Ne'veah..." nothing; the ship trembled again, starting to leave...

" _ **NE'VEAH, LOOK ME!**_ " I screamed, so loud that my throat ached, while warm tears slid down my cheeks. Finally he stopped and turned to me, his expression unreadable. I looked at him fiercely, ignoring the tears and holding back the sobs; I was desperate, but the rage was strong as well. Ne'veah kept watching me for a few long seconds, then stood up from that fucking chair and walked towards me, bending down slightly; a slow purr escaped from him

"It is all right now, we ha..."

I slapped him as hard as I could, right on his left lower jaw. His head didn't move a millimetre, and my hand ached terribly; but neither this, nor the surprised expression he made prevented me from smack him again on his right side, using my other hand. And I didn't stop; I angrily wiped my tears and hit him on his chest again, again and again...

" **How can you** _ **dare**_ **to say it is all right?!** " I cried, punching him right where his heart should be " **you left me on this fucking ship, chaining me, living me alone! You disappeared without saying anything, without telling me the truth about your mate and to make matter worse YOU ABANDONED ME WHEN I NEEDED YOU! YOU FUCKING LIAR!"** my knuckles ached as much as my throat; it was like to hit a wall with bare hands, but I couldn't stop, I didn't want to stop. He looked at me with his fucking expression impassive, as I continued to vent my anger, crying and shouting, insulting him with words that no one could believe they existed. He tried to take my hands a couple of times, but I shoved them away, continuing to hit him. As time passed, I slowly lost my energies; my punches became weaker, and my body had difficulty to stand up; and only when I was too tired even to lift my arms or my gaze from the floor, I let him touch my shoulders. A low purr filled my ears, but I found it unbearable. All had the opportunity to have their say; well, now was my turn

"Everyone around me tells a different truth, a different perspective that I can't understand, and yet they all try to bring me on one side or the other. I decided to follow you because I love you, but now...I don't know in what to believe anymore. Neither in them...nor in you" the purr stooped abruptly. I searched his eyes, the pain in my chest almost insupportable, the desperation ready to flow again "will you...will you lie to me again? Do you really care about me? Are you...the Badblood?" finally his face showed some emotion: his eyes went wide and his mandibles opened a bit. He was about to speak, but I didn't finish yet "I'm scared, scared to hear other words, other truths, and other lies. Now I'm here, I can't do anything to find the answers; but..." tears bathed again my checks "...even after all this, I still love you, and it hurts...it hurts so much, so _please_ " I bent over "just tell me this unique single truth, and I will do whatever you want. Ne'veah, _who are you_?"

The silence fell in the room, interrupted only by my own sobs. I stood still there, bent in front of him, hoping, preying to have an answer. After different minutes, I thought that always was lost, that all the days spent with him had been only a beautiful and impossible dream. I was almost to give up, and only in that moment I heard his voice

"I thought to know it, until I met you"

Before I had the time to look up, his strong arms surrounded my body, lifting me from the floor. I froze immediately, despite the warmth coming from him; I didn't know his intentions, and again I was confused and scared, still trembling and still crying. Ne'veah took me in my room and gently made me sit on the edge of the bed, placing himself at my side. I dried my tears, timidly looking at him as he put his arms on his thighs, the gaze lost in thoughts. We remained silent another bit, and I was still rubbing my eyes when he said

"Li'ya...was a great huntress" those words attired my attention. I turned again towards him, confused but curious. Ne'veah continued

"We met casually during a hunt, on a planet known to be a good hunting reserve. She unknowingly killed my prey, a giant white beast big twice our size, when I already had injured it and the animal was too weak to fight against her. Following the rules, Li'ya let me take the trophy from the animal, but I remained really impressed from her. She was a huntress, young and strong, and when she introduced herself as an Elder's daughter, although I knew my rank wasn't high enough and we weren't from the same clan, I only thought about what anyone of my kind would have thought: a strong female for strong pups. So I offered her the trophy and, with my pride, she accepted it willingly, impressed as well about my skills. We started the mating ritual and I was able to submit her after a good fight" he paused a moment, probably to give me the time to think about it. I didn't know why he was telling me all this, I was almost surprised by his loquacity and at the same time I felt incredibly stupid to envy a poor dead soul, but I couldn't do anything for it. I remained silent, ha hadn't finished yet

"I would have leaved my clan only when the pups were born and would have returned when they were grown. Meanwhile, when she came with his father to talk with my Elders or when there was the time, we met and mated, so that my seed could take hold. We didn't talk much, there was nothing to say, and our meetings were short and quick. It was perfectly normal, for our race. I didn't need to know her; I didn't need to know what was happening in her clan…or in her mind" he took a long breath "because I had seen only the huntress, not the ingenuity of our age. After a while, she returned as a messenger of her clan, but wanted to see me first. I thought were good news about the pups, but when I arrived she told me something that I would never have imagined: she asked…no, demanded me to betray my clan, to help her to kill my Elders and the priestess, to kill her own father and take the domain of both clans"

Ne'veah turned to me, his eyes still lost in the memories "I immediately understood that there was something wrong; only a fool, a Badblood, could corrupt in that way a young mind. I had been lucky, Ate'yo taught me well, and I would have never betrayed my clan. She attacked immediately after...and you know how it went" his gaze rested on his hands, and his mandibles clicked together "Sometimes, I still feel her blood on my fingers; the burden of my guilt will follow me until death" he paused just a bit, then watched me straight in the eyes "I escaped as ordered, but I crashed in the most unexpected of unforeseen: you". A chill ran down my spine, as his eyes didn't abandon mine.

Instinctively I looked away, still uncertain about his words. He inhaled deeply, and started to talk again

"A regrettable mistake, I thought. I had to go away and immediately. But days became weeks, and no one would have thought that an Ooman being was hiding me, at least not voluntarily. You surprised me so many times I've lost count; you gave me everything without expecting anything in return, making your best to help me and understand my needs. As time passed, I started to get used to you, you were a good company…almost an ally; I still didn't know, but you were already changing me in a way I couldn't think possible" he paused a bit, probably searching the proper words "I always had been interested in Oomans, considering them more than preys, probably thanks to priestess Elise, but I never pushed myself too far. But with you…there was something different. I felt the need to understand something more about your behavior, something…deeper. After that night, when the Ooman male attacked you, I did my research, but it wasn't enough, and when we were captured, you surprised me again: you followed me, risking your life, abandoning your home and you race…in the name of that love you always told me" a low rumble escaped from him, and his mandibles clicked frantically.

Ne'veah stopped and his body tensed; he seemed…conflicted. I opened my mouth, not sure what to say, but suddenly he talked

"Illogical, completely illogical" and he pronounced that words like he was angry "For our race the clan is everything, our home, our place to belong and where our honor and value is recognized; its safety has the priority on anything, I killed my mate for my clan! But you…you showed me something else; despite the risks, you were ready to start a war only to protect my life, worried only about me and nothing else, and more you acted in that way, more something was growing inside me, a sort of concern I never felt, something that pushed me to chain you here to not distract me from the mission. My clan and its safety, that was all…"

he turned again towards me, and his eyes this time were burning like fire "I was already in the middle of the operation, in the control room of the other clan, ready to tamper with their system to search some information when I saw you on the monitors, confined in one of their rooms. I was planning to inform the Elder Ate'yo after the mission, they couldn't hurt you because you didn't kill anyone, but suddenly the only two Yautja in the control room started to talk: she is an obstacle for our plans, gather our allies, the Ooman will die during the night"

I couldn't contain a shocked expression. If this was true, then Dachande had lied and that was only a way to kill me out of their base, so they could tell everything they wanted: for example that I had returned to my "mate" and I was a Badblood like him, refusing to cooperate. And the things were even worse; because it wasn't only a _one_ Badblood! Ne'veah looked up, probably thinking something, before continue with his story

"The safety of my clan, nothing else. Inform the Elders, find the Badbloods and kill them, nothing else. Restore the peace, nothing else. I was a hunter, it was my duty; I had to prove my innocence, I had to take that information in some way. But…I deactivated my cloaking device and attacked the two Yautja, knocking out one of them and capturing the other. There wasn't no chance that the Elder Sain'ja would have believed me, but I had to try, I had to take you out of there as soon as possible"

"…why?" my only question. If his clan was so important, then why risk everything to save me? Ne'veah turned to me, searching my eyes; our gaze met and…

"Because you taught me what means _love_ "

My heart stopped, and the air left my lungs. I looked at him with wide eyes. I couldn't be possible, _it couldn't_. He… _he was telling me that_ …

Ne'veah broke the contact between us, lowering his gaze and placing again his arms on his tights; he seemed really tired

"That's why I can't answer to your question. I killed my mate, abandoned my clan, and refused the rules of my race. I'm not a Badblood, but neither a hunter anymore. Neither a traitor, nor a warrior. For now, I only have a question" he breathed deeply, and it seemed that talking cost him a great effort "if I really cared about her…If I really _loved_ her…would I have been able to save her?"

I wanted to say something, everything, but I simply didn't know what to think; and in any case Ne'veah didn't give me the time. He suddenly stood up from the bed, his expression again impassive

"You cannot believe what I told you; like you said, it could be just another lie. Just one thing: don't ask me to bring you back to the other clan; I will not let you in their hands again. Tell me a destination and I will escort you there, my clan, Earth, a place where you are safe. I will wait in the control room, take some time to rest" he turned and was about to leave

"…and you?" the question escaped from my lips. Ne'veah opened the door but stopped for a moment, his back turned to me

"…the gods will judge me for my mistakes" and he left the room.

I slid to the ground on my knees, my heart ready to explode. Reason was gone, the pain overwhelming. Oh fuck. Oh God. I couldn't think, I couldn't talk, and I found barely the strength to breath. Oh shit. This was real, this was truth.

 _What the fuck I have done_ …


	23. Believe

**First of all: hi again! and sorry for the long wait. Hmmm, I don't know, this chapter had been very difficult to write and I'm not conviced at all. Do you think it is ok? Leave me a review and let me now! And now time for the last reviews:**

\- seraphon: thanks as always for your support!

\- trinity wright 07: thanks! it's good to know that my chapters provoke some emotion

\- CheesyMonsterBoy: tell me if you prefer this type of reaction in this chapter XP

\- Kimah36: I really tried to develop something about your review but it had been very difficult! let me know what you think!

\- loumary morales: oooh thank you!

\- Lady Ravanna: thanks! help me even with the next review!

\- CheebieBeebie: than you! I'm glad you like my work; so please help me with this chapter, I'm not sure if I was able to express emotions correctly :)

* * *

 _23\. Believe_

I stared that door for hours, curled up on the floor, the eyes burning for the tears that still bathed my cheeks and the pain in my chest that wasn't less painful than before. My mind was a tangle of confused thoughts, horrible nightmares that tormented me relentlessly, remembering every single moment of my mistakes. I never felt so ashamed and disappointed with myself, and there was only a thing that was eager to get out…

 _Ne'veah, I'm sorry._

How could I have been so blind? I was trying so hard to stay at his side, to protect him, to understand his needs and to make him understand my feelings…that I forgot to know how _he_ felt _._ It didn't matter in what way, he had lost a mate, his honor, his clan, his home; and despite this, he had continued to fight. Not for him, not for his life, but for the innocents, for the truth, for what he believed, facing the prejudice, the humiliation…all alone, without talking to anyone…

My heart ached just thinking about the burden of a such responsibility; he had tried to save all, he had tried to save _me!_ The truth was as real as painful: Ne'veah…has never left me alone. In my house, on the ship, in the other clan…even now; he had always tried to take care of me, to keep me safe, even if that meant being marked as a Badblood. It was the truth, I knew it was the truth; his suffering, his fighting…simply because he told me that.

The tears started to flow again, remembering me my guilt. I told him that I loved him, that I would have done anything for him! And then…why I abandoned him? The lies corrupted my mind, guiding me in the wrong direction. But this was just an excuse! Ne'veah has never lied; he always had said the truth! I had to believe in him from the beginning, just like Elise had said, but I didn't! And now for this…for this… _for this…he was going to DIE! I WAS HIS ONLY CHANCE OF SALVATION AND NOW HE WAS GOING TO DIE!_ The air was struggling to get into my lungs, while my body was shaking in total panic. I wanted to cross that fucking door, I wanted him, I wanted him so badly! Oh but how dare I just stand at his presence? How could I look in his eyes, or tell Elise that I failed? How dare I to say that I loved him? The tears kept falling, the pain unbearable. Faintly, I started to crawl toward the door, placing a palm on the cold metal, looking at it like it was an impenetrable barrier.

 _I'm sorry, I'm so sorry._

I could do nothing now; I escaped from the other clan, Sain'ja won't believe me anymore. And yet, I still believed in my words: I would give my life for him, I didn't care what god I had to beg for this, for take my soul instead of his; I will save him at any cost…or I'll die trying.

I got up from the ground and nervously opened the door, scared just from the sight of the corridor in front of me. Slowly, very slowly, I started to walk towards the control room, barely repressing the urge to turn back and hiding myself under the furs, wiping my tears in the meantime; I had at least to try to make myself presentable…probably an useless effort. The last steps were the worst; the room was right in front of me, giving me the feeling of entering in hell. Swallowing hard, I entered inside, the legs that hardly supported me, shaking uncontrollably.

And here he was, sitting near the metal table, _that_ table that we had used to develop the strategy for _our_ mission…together...Only after I noticed the arm, the limb of the other Yautja that had attacked me just a few hours before; and then I noticed the wrist gauntlet in Ne'veah's hands, the gift left from the enemy. There were some wires attacked on it and connected to Ne'veah's wrist gauntlet; surely he was trying to do something with it. I didn't have the time even to do a few steps that he turned abruptly towards me, his dreads swinging for the motion. My heart stopped and I froze immediately were I was; my eyes met his, and as always his iced-blue eyes seemed to pierce your soul, while it was impossible to understand what he was thinking. We remained silent for a few seconds, and I was still holding my breath when he said

"Did you decide where to go?" he turned to press some buttons on the other device. His tone was calm, restrained, as if the situation was completely under control. I could do nothing but watch the scene in front of me: he sitting near that table, all alone, probably still focused on the mission and ignoring his faith. I bit my lip nervously and looked down, ashamed, and again some tears flowed down my cheeks against my will: I knew perfectly what to say, but after all I've done my words sounded like a joke, a stupid whim of a stupid human that of this world didn't understand a damn thing. I was still trying to find the proper words when a noise made me look up; Ne'veah was looking me with the head tilted on one side, his mandibles that clicked frantically. I looked away, embarrassed

"I-I..." even if I was trying to say something, I stopped immediately when he got up and walked towards me, reaching me in a few steps. My body went rigid again, and I literally jumped when his hand reached my cheeks, gently wiping the tears. He started to purr, and I couldn't hide a surprised expression

"Why are you crying now?" his simple question. My eyes went wide; was he really asking me _why?_ I compromised the mission, I sent him to die! And...it seemed that he didn't care. I searched his eyes, and he… _smiled_. More tears flowed down; it was really too much to bear for me

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry…" finally those words found their way through my lips; I buried my face in my hands, while the sobs grew uncontrollably "I-I'm so sorry Ne'veah…pl-ease forg-iv-e me, pleeeeeease…" my body started to tremble, and slowly I fell on the ground; his strong arms surrounded me, supporting me, as I continued to beg him, to plead him for his forgiveness, again and again. Ne'veah bent on his knees, purring like an engine, pulling me towards him; my face was buried in his wide chest and I could feel his mandibles nuzzling my hair

"It is all right, it is all right…" and more he said it, the more I cried. Fuck, I was confused, surprised ashamed, but mostly I never felt so pathetic in my entire life. I continued to cry for an indefinite time, but his purr, his warmth and his caresses were the best of the lullabies, and slowly they had the desired effect. When I finally started to calm down, one of his hands grabbed mines, gently but firmly, forcing me to show my face, probably a mask of water. Ne'veah gently wiped my last tears, and his hand was still there when I found the strength to say

"It is all my fault…" my voice was hoarse and weak, and my throat ached terribly; Ne'veah remained silent, continuing to stroke my face, as I continued "I'm sorry Ne'veah…I wanted just to help you…forgive me, please" I looked at him pleadingly and his eyes searched mine "I have abandoned you, I didn't have believed in you, I-I have preferred to listen to someone else instead of you, and now you…you…" I barely repressed another sob; the only thought of his death was enough to desire mine "you are not a Badblood, not even remotely, I'm sure of this; I will never forgive myself for what I told you. Please _, please_ forgive me; I lov…" I stopped, felling like I haven't the right to do say it, nor to touch him. I just stood there, the gaze lowered, letting him touch me, his hand that gently ran through my hair. Ne'veah remained silent for a while, his mandibles still clicking, and I waited patiently for his answer; his voice arrived almost suddenly

"I can't do it…because there's nothing to forgive" he said. I looked up abruptly, surprised, and it all happened too fast. His face so close, his mandibles wide open, and his mouth on mine. A chill ran down my body, stronger than an electric shock, paralyzing me, while the air abandoned my lungs, almost suffocating me. When he pulled away, the only effort to close my lips seemed impossible; he breathed deeply, and his body relaxed

"You have always searched me, you have always tried to protect me; I'm the only one who has to ask you forgiveness, hiding my guilt and leaving you alone. I had always chose the wrong way to protect you, and for this I was almost to lose you" he bent again towards me, and his forehead touched mine "I will not fail again" he pulled me even closer, his eyes focused on me "I promise, on my honor, that I will never make you suffer again. I had already lost a mate, but the past is in the past; there are new thing I know now, and if love means to stay at your side, to protect you, to leave with you and to fight with you, then…I love you Jessica, and I will struggle for you as long as I breath"

My face was burning terribly, and it was difficult even just to breath. I have always hoped for this, and now I simply couldn't believe it. Some tears flowed down my cheeks but I immediately wiped them; I couldn't cry, not now. Timidly I placed a hand on his lower mandible, the unbearable need to feel him close to me

"I should have listen to you, I should have believed in you" I whispered softly

"I should have listen to you, I shouldn't have leaved you" he answered

"I love you Ne'veah; I will do anything to save you"

"I love you, my mate; this time I won't let you behind" he opened his mandibles, and I literally throw myself against him, giving him the most passionate of the kisses. It wasn't a dream, it was real, and it was the truth…

A sudden and repeated sound interrupted us, an annoying beep that didn't seem to give a sign of wanting to quit. Ne'veah's hand went on his collar, and his expression put me instantly in alarm

"The tracking device, someone is trying to contact me" he immediately got up from the ground, lifting me in his arms and heading towards the control position. He sat with me on his lap, and started to press a short sequence of buttons. I looked at him worried, then at the monitor, fearing bad news for us; the image started to be more and more clear, and when I recognized who was almost I had a heart attack. Elise was watching us… and she didn't seem pleased at all.


	24. Madness

**Hello to everyone! A pleasure to hear you again! Let's start immediately to answer to your reviews, and as always thanks for your support!**

 **-** Lady Ravanna: thank you!

\- CheesyMonsterBoi: You are right, I wanted to make understand her feelings and I talked about it a lot. However in this chapter I put more interaction between the characters. Thanks as always for your review!

\- loumary morales: thanks; I'm glad you liked it so much :)

\- CheebieBeebie: thank you, it's always a pleasure to have feedbacks about the emotions!

\- Tefangirl: thank you! I hope you will like even this chapter :)

-Kimah36: you perfectly understood what I wanted to express, thanks always for your help!

* * *

 _24\. Madness_

I was an adult, maybe ultimately I acted without much rationality, but I was still an adult. And yet, in front of the Elise's icy stare, I felt like a kid scolded by his mother for a trouble bigger than usual. Although she was sitting on the couch of her room, a hand placed on her belly, her position didn't make her less intimidating. I tried to say something, anything, but the words died in my throat; and when she started to talk, I was really terrorized

"I will clarify the situation" she said, her tone hard and authoritative "I lost your signal short after your arrival on the planet, almost as if it had been _discontinued voluntarily._ The Elders's reaction had been almost immediate; despite our efforts, they have sent their troops to find you. And just a few hours ago we received a communication from the other clan: Sain'ja is furious, talking about the betrayal of the only witness who could stop this madness" she looked me straight in the eyes, and a shiver ran through my body "I don't know the details, Jessica, but you escaped, you were there when you shouldn't be, and now there is very little that I can do, _now._..the war has never been so close" and the silence fell heavily in the room. Instinctively I looked away, too ashamed to say something. I felt conflicted; I wanted to save Ne'veah more than anything else, but the price of innocent lives was too high to bear, and maybe now it was too late. I heard Elise sighing deeply, her voice still hard but tired

"So, I hope you have a valid reason for this… _fucking_ mess. Tell me what happened, and if Paya wish it, we'll find another solution" she sank in the sofa and gently stroked her belly, a gesture that made me feel even guiltier: not only her clan, but even her family was in danger, and all because of me. I looked at her mortified

"Elise, I'm so s…"

"It is my entire fault, my priestess" Ne'veah brought a hand to his chest and bent as much as he could "I acted with selfishness and without thinking about the consequences, I'm the only one that deserves your punishment" I turned to him with a shocked expression; again he was trying to protect me, to keep me safe; but this time I wouldn't allowed it. As soon as he started to talk about the mission, I placed a hand on his chest, stopping him

"This is not the truth" I looked in his eyes, then to Elise "it is _our_ fault" and a look was enough to see that she had understood. Finally her gaze softened, and her body relaxed

"I'm listening"

We told her everything, trying to help each other for the reconstruction of events; and it didn't matter how much was embarrassing or humiliating, I really felt the need to clarify everything, with her and with Ne'veah. I will never forget my mistakes, or the incomprehension between us, but now I was here with him and ready to remedy; even if I had to admit it…I would have done it again…only to save him. After our story, Elise remained quiet for a while, her expression lost in deep thoughts; she didn't seem angry anymore, and I admired her for her capability of self-control. She was the priestess after all

"More than a single Badblood…and to make matters worse we don't have anything to prove it, except for that wrist gauntlet you have taken from that aggressor; did you discover something?"

"My apologies, priestess, I did my best but the chances are very low" Ne'veah answered

"Damn. I will try to talk again with Sain'ja, meanwhile you continue to examine it and keep me informed for any news. Otherwise, be prepared to escape again" at that words Ne'veah started to talk in his own language, and Elise did the same. I didn't need to be a genius to understand that they were saying something that probably I didn't like. My gaze went from one to the other, the disappointment growing inside me, but while the conversation was becoming more aggressive, my mind was working to find some type of solution. A proof, this was all that we needed; maybe there was something that I noticed that could be helpful, anything that could push the Badbloods to come out, anything; the only moment when they were about to expose themselves was when they tried to kill me…but…oh, if only Sain'ja would have lis..! I found the answer exactly when Elise hissed something to Ne'veah, silencing him. He just looked her for a second, before bowing his head in submission

" _This is an order_ : don't leave the ship and be prepared to go away in any moment" she said, her tone again hard "I'll contact you as soon as possible"

"Elise wait!" I said instinctively; she looked at me with a questioning look. I knew it was something completely illogical, and maybe even idiot, but it could be a possibility; I cleared my throat

"Well, I was thinking: the goal of the Badbloods is to send the clans to war so they can easily kill all the obstacles and take the power. They used Ne'veah as a scapegoat but I stopped them, and they tried to kill me. I was a trouble for them" I stopped a moment, unsure to say the rest "but I'm still alive and, technically, I am still a problem. If I return to bring to Sain'ja the proofs of their plans, surely they will try something to eliminate me once and for all; I could be a kind of bait…I think" I knew that Ne'veah was glaring at me, his growl that reverberated in my ear, but I just ignored it, waiting for her answer

"I'm not sure that Sain'ja will be willing to listen to you, and we don't have a proof to show him"

"Probably I'm not the most honorable of warriors, but I'm not a Badblood, I'm not the real treat; Sain'ja is wise, I'm sure he will allow me a meeting so…I can bring him that wrist gauntlet" I stopped talking; now it arrived the worst part. Elise sighed deeply

"I really appreciate your attempts to remedy, but also understand that I can't send you to risk your life for nothing, because it's nothing that we have, not concretely at least"

"Yes, I know" I took Ne'veah hand, feeling the need to have him closer. He looked at me puzzled and I smiled, then I looked back to Elise "we have nothing…but they don't know it yet" her eyes went wide, and again there was a total silence for a few seconds. I was holding my breath, the frantic beat of my heart echoing in my head; I continued to look her until Elise bent towards me, almost as she could reach me from behind the screen, her expression still astonished

"You are saying… _to lie_ to the Elders?!"

"We have no choice, and I…" I didn't have the time to finish that Ne'veah grabbed forcefully my cheeks in his hand and made me turn towards him; his expression was deadly serious

" _Out-of-question_ " he growled, his icy eyes locked on me; I tried to get free from his grip, moaning in pain, and he released my face; Elise spoke again

"Jessica, it's too dangerous, there are too many variables involved. If we follow your plan and something goes wrong, if the Badbloods don't do anything and Sain'ja doesn't find the proofs, not only Ne'veah, but even you would be considered a Badblood, and at that point I can do nothing to save you. You would be forced to escape again, but this time there will be no possibility of return, neither on the Earth"

"I know that I don't understand a lot of things about this world, and so I don't understand what truly means to be a Badblood. I only know this: Elise, I will never know how to thank you for what you did for me, and at the same time how to apologize" she frowned "listen, voluntarily or not, your choices brought Ne'veah to me, and I could not be more happier" I blushed "you welcomed me in your clan as an old friend, you protected me, and what I have done for you? Nothing, except causing an imminent war. I'm ready to remedy, so please let me help you, this time for real" Ne'veah growled and I knew he wasn't pleased at all for my decision. I looked him in the eyes, stopping him before he could talk

"I don't even know how much is dishonorable to live like an outcast, but honestly Ne'veah, I prefer this than see you dead, if the things don't go well. I understand that you want to protect me, and you would prefer to take all the guilt, but I want to protect you as well and, as you said, we have to solve this together. The time is short, and this is the fastest solution that we have; you want to put an end to it as much as I want it, so just let's do it for the safety of your clan" he looked at me without saying anything, I probably had blocked any possible objection. Elise remained quiet again, her expression unreadable; she closed her eyes and took a deep breath; and then, with my surprise, a smile appeared on her face

"Humans, always ready to put themselves in trouble" and that affirmation made me smile as well; she sank again in her sofa, breathing deeply again "so, Ne'veah, you deserve to express your opinion about this; speak freely"

"This is pure madness" he answered without even thinking "but I'm ready to sacrifice myself for my clan. Whatever you choose, I will be honored to serve you once again, my priestess" he bowed his head and brought an hand to his chest; if I were not so sure about his intentions to protect me I could almost be jealous…almost. Elise nodded, her face again serious

"You are right Jessica, this only crazy solution is what we have for the moment, and the time is against us; I'm forced to take in consideration your proposal. I will talk with my mate and we will discuss how to proceed. Wait for my answer, and for Paya's sake, you two follow the orders for once, don't leave without a valid reason" she smiled bitterly. I knew how she felt: her clan was safe, but if we died or banished, she had lost anyway. We greeted her bowing our head, as it was right to do, and when the communication went off, the silence came back, interrupted only from the light hum of the spaceship. I looked to Ne'veah as if I had just woken up from a dream, uncertain on what to do

"And…now?" I asked

"We will follow the orders, waiting here, that's all" he growled, looking away and pressing a series of buttons on the console. I could see clearly in him a mixture of emotions: angry, concern, maybe even sadness

"I love you" I said, and he stopped what he was doing, turning to me "I love you, please don't ask me to leave you, you know I can't" I couldn't contain a pleading expression. He stared at me for a few second, and then his hand reached my face, gently stroking my skin. I melted in that contact, rubbing myself against his hand, whispering softly "I love you" and repeating it again and again. Ne'veah bent towards me, his strong arms enveloping my body, while mine went around his neck; his body was warm against me, while the strong bits of his heart delighted my ear. There wasn't a place more secure than this, and I preferred to die rather than leave it

"It's the first time that I'm worried about a fight" he said suddenly

"Worried? Fight? Oh thanks, I'm terrorized to the idea to lose you and you think about the fight, thanks Ne'veah" I giggled. His grip on me tightened, and with one hand he gently grabbed my chin, lifting up my face. The kiss took my breath away

"I will protect you with all my strength; I will not fail again, I swear" he growled

"Hey, hey…" I said softly, gently kissing one of his mandibles "I know you will, but now…I just need you. Can you just stay with me…my mate?" it was so strange to say it, I still couldn't believe it. Ne'veah looked me straight in the eyes, titling the head on one side

"…you are not my mate yet" and before I could said something, he picked me up bridal style and stood up from the chair, exiting from the control room. Instinctively my body froze, and I looked at him surprised

"W-wait, what do you mean by that?"

"I mated you, but I did it wrong: I didn't mark you, nor I gave the time to my musk to take hold, or released my seed inside you; I lost control and it's unforgivable, I have to remedy"

" **What?!** " a chill ran down my spine, lightning a fire in my chest and going straight between my legs. Ne'veah brought me in his room, making me sit directly on his bed; the purrs started immediately, strong enough to send shivers of pleasure on my whole body; he bent to his knees in front of me

"I imagine that your mating rituals are different from mines, and the first time I didn't think about your needs. I can only propose myself in the way I know: this time I ask the permission to mate you. I have no trophies to offer, nor something to equal value; but I promise, in front of our Gods, that I will protect and respect you for the rest of my existence. I will be your life mate if you wish, and may Paya bless the unfortunate soul that will dare to lay a finger against you" he put a hand to his chest and bowed slightly. My hands went immediately to my mouth, suppressing the cries of joy, while barely I could hold back the tears. An oath that could not be broken, a promise that could not be betrayed. I throw myself against him, my mouth searching his, my hands between his dreads

"You have my permission" I whispered, kissing him again "fight me…if you can"

"As you wish" and he pushed me down on the bed.

* * *

"My mate…Elise…"

"uhmmmm" Elise opened his eyes and met the gaze of her mate, sitting near her on the sofa. She felt tired and dazed, and confused for a few seconds. When she realized that she had fallen asleep, her eyes went wide and immediately sat up, but a violent contraction of her belly made her moan in pain. Ate'yo intervened immediately, guiding her to his chest and surrounding her body with an arm to keep her still, gently but firmly. She was breathing heavily, her face worried and scared

"How long have I slept? How much time we lost?"

"It is all right, my mate, probably you slept less than an hour" he purred slightly. She buried her face in his chest, sighing deeply, and trying to calm down, while Ate'yo gently stroked her head; her mate's attentions were the best medicine for all. They remained silence for a few minutes, until Ate'yo spoke

"You're trying too hard. Let me handle this"

"You are too occupied to fight with the other Elders, and it's my duty, as well as my will, to help you in this fight. Above all I started all this, so I must to finish"

"Sei-i, but you need the proper rest, even for our pup" he gently stroked her belly "and as you have to fight with me, I have to take care of my mate". Elise smiled gently at that words, and let him kiss her with all the tenderness he was capable. Unfortunately she knew she had to interrupt this moment of peace

"I talked with them"

"So?"

"Be prepared" she half smiled "I already know you won't like it".


	25. Pause

**Sometimes, in our lives, even in the worst moment, we just need a break from everything. That is what I wanted to express in this chapter. Thanks to Kimah36 that helped me with the mistakes and the punctuation, and thanks to loumary-morales and CheebieBeebie for the review! Hope you'll like it!  
**

* * *

The taste of his tongue, his body against mine, the purrs, and his clawed hands all over me. Once again that musky odor filled my nose, strong and yet pleasant at the same time: _his_ wonderful scent. The simple touch of our skin was enough to send me over the edge, our bodies entangled together and eager for each other. God, we barely started and I was already out of breath. I wanted him, I wanted _to fuck him so badly_.

I spread my legs wide, my thighs rubbing on his hips, as he thrust gently but firmly, the friction of our clothes making me moan in anticipation. My hands frantically climbed his back, in the attempt to remove the pieces of his armor, while his, oh so terribly slow, traveled on my thigh and then up to my breast, squeezing it as his delicious tongue snaked along my neck. He helped me to undress him, never allowing me to stand up from the bed, letting my hands travel on his wide chest and down to his sculpted abs. Oh it was so wonderful. I reached his loincloth inserting my fingers between the skin and the fabric, but when I tried to remove it, he gently pushed my hands away. He continued to explore every inch of my body, caressing me, nuzzling me with his mandibles, teasing me…fuck! It was almost unbearable. I groaned in frustration, the desire burning in each vein and each molecule

"Ne'veah, please…" I sighed, but he ignored my request. And when I looked at him, a chill run down my body: his eyes shone like the brightest of the sapphires, admiring my body…no, admiring _me_ like a precious treasure. I was sure of it, I could feel it in that touches, in his gaze. It was so different from the first time. He was still dominant, but was taking his time to know what I liked, to explore our differences, instead of just submit me, and I couldn't believe it. I thought that this could never happen, a dream far and impossible; and instead here he was, with me, now and always. And if he wanted to love me, I was more than happy to comply. I undid the leather top I wore, presenting my breasts to him, and gently caressed his right mandible

"Please, lick them" I panted. Ne'veah looked me just a second before honorning my request. He went gently at first, but then started rubbing and sucking them roughly as my moans increased, finding my nipples the weak spot. I almost jumped when his right hand stroked my inner thigh, making his way to my core

" _Fuck!_ " I muffled between the moans, as his thumb teased my sex trough the clothes. I was literally trapped under him, the pleasure between my legs and his mouth on my breasts. My hands squeezed his tendrils, and he growled in response, torturing me even harder. It was difficult even to talk, but the growing need of my body needed to be satiated

"Ah…finger…" I stammered "Put…a finger…in" a moan almost suppressed my last word, and the air abandoned my lungs again. His gaze went on me, the eyes locked on my face as he continued to please me; I tried to stay focused on his face, but my head fell back when he satisfied my last request. For a second, just for a second, I was worried about his claws; but soon it became difficult even to think rationally, as his finger danced in and out of me, joined short after by another. My body started to tremble, the pleasure built and built inside me. The world disappeared; now there was only I and Ne'veah…and the orgasm that soon would have reduced my body in a wobbly pudding.

I never imagined being able to shout so loud, my throat aching and my back arching, as the pleasure arrived like a cold shower. I fell again on the bed like a dead body and stood still for a few seconds, panting heavily. Ne'veah lifted up and I immediately missed the contact, but my limbs found a new energy when his hands went to remove his loincloth, revealing his erection that seemed to fight to get out from the garment. And when finally I could see him completely naked, my first thought was that neither a God nor man could be compared to his full beauty.

I reacted almost without thinking, throwing myself against him, my hands that grabbed his hips and my face rubbing against his groin, kissing the skin in adoration. Probably he found my behavior strange and quite funny, because I heard a short chuckle coming from him; and my heart skip a bit. Ne'veah laughed rarely, barely smiled; the sound was hoarse and low, almost threatening, but I loved it as it was. I realized that I would do anything to make him smile, and laugh, and live happily like he deserved to live, with me, with his clan…for the rest of his life. I rubbed again myself against him and he chuckled again, while my kisses were going lower, kissing the tip of his cock. The chuckle stopped abruptly, and his hips moved back a little. I looked at him confused, and he returned my same gaze

"What are you doing?" he asked, his voice that seemed a little worried

"Do you ever…" I stopped realizing the problem. Mandibles, right; and big and dangerous females to fight before mating. I couldn't repress a smile for my silliness and when he looked at me even more confused I was almost to laugh "sorry; my fault" I gently stroked his right thigh "I would like to do this human practice with you; I will not hurt you, trust me"

"I already trust you" he said, waiting patiently for my next move. I gently started to kiss his manhood for all his length, massaging it with a hand while the other continued to caress his thigh with the same kindness…and sometime touching his nice butt. His body slowly relaxed, the purrs again in my ears, and I started to move my hand up and down, while my tongue timidly slid on him to test his reaction. A low growl escaped from him, and for a moment I thought he was upset; but he didn't stop me, so I continued to taste him with more and more confidence, licking from the base to the tip, swirling around his head. His panting increased, as much as his growls, strong like thunders inside the room. I took it into my mouth, and the roar almost scared me. I looked up to search his eyes, without stopping to please him, still slowly to test the reaction; and the sight left me speechless: his chest rising up heavily for each breath, the head drew back in pure bliss, mandibles wide open and the purrs that continued relentlessly.

His pleasure became mine, pushing me to suck his cock harder and faster, and be rewarded with other growls; I guided his right hand behind my head, his claws in my hair, and his hips slowly started to move in response to my motions. I felt that I could never be satiated from his taste, and I never stopped neither when his muscles tensed more and more, his thighs solid and rigid like rocks. His grip on me tightened, his panting increased…and suddenly he pushed me away, grabbing my shoulder and pinning me down on the bed so strong that it hurt. It took me a few seconds to realize what happened; Ne'veah was still towering over me, the passion barely under control, while his burning eyes were asking for only one thing: me.

I took off my loincloth and spread my legs again, waiting expectantly; he didn't lose time, grabbing my thighs and pushing his cock inside me, slowly but completely, filling me and making me cry for the pleasure and pain. He bent towards me and nuzzled my neck, guiding my hands behind his shoulders. The first thrust took my breath away, and the air abandoned my lungs as he started his dance in and out of me; so good, and so terribly slow…

"Ah…Ne'veah…" his musk was overwhelming, almost making me lose the reason "oh god, more"

"I risk to hurt you" his breath stroked my skin, his voice sweet like honey in my ear "this time I don't…" he stopped when my tongue slid on his mouth, gently licking the soft flesh

"More, please more" I moaned. Ne'veah didn't react for a few seconds, then his tongue reached mine, kissing me passionately as a growl reverberated through my body. A powerful thrust hit me with the strength of a train, making me cry between the kisses, followed shortly after with many others. His pace increased in a few seconds, and I found myself rocking against the bed, screaming and crying loudly, the mind too clouded for something except for the pleasure. Yes, fuck me, harder, faster, more. I didn't remember other words; there was only him, his scent, his body, his voice and his cock that was ravishing me

"Yes! Don't stop! I..I…" I continued to plead, toes curled and the head drew back. But when I thought that there was nothing more maddening than this, Ne'veah grabbed my hips, pulled it out and turned me on my stomach with incredible speed, slamming himself again inside me, his claws clenched on my buttocks. I screamed; no, I literally roared as he took me in hurried and violent thrusts, while his tongue traveled on my shoulder and I could feel his hot breath next to my ear

"OH YES! OH GOD!" my throat ached for the effort, but I wanted let him know how much I liked it, how much I needed it "I love you, I love you!" and his grip tightened. I could feel myself squeezing around him more and more, my body reduced in a mass of spasms, and the orgasm arrived with the strength of a hurricane. My sight went wide, and barely I could hear Ne'veah's loud roar and the pain that hit my shoulder; there was only the sensation of his hot seed filling me to the limit. I collapsed on the bed, body trembling and full of chills, totally unable to move. I could not say when his hand started to travel on my back in soft caresses, tickling my skin and relaxing my muscles. I took my time to recover, closing the eyes and breathing deeply; the pain on my shoulder grew gradually, pushing me to look at it: the blood dripped into small rivulets from four little wounds

"Is this…" my voice was so dry and hoarse that surprised me

"My mark, a way to say you belong to someone; and with my musk, it means you belong to me"

The tears arrived instantly, and I couldn't contain some sobs; his hand stopped on my hip

"It hurts so much?" he asked

"No" I whined "I'm so happy, so happy…" I tried pathetically to wipe my face, already a mask of water. Ne'veah made a strange sound, a mixture between a growl and a sigh

"Do the humans cry so often? You cry when you are sad, angry, frightened and now happy. I need a translation device, so I can understand what type of cry will be the next time"

I laughed between the sobs, while he gently wrapped us in the furs, my head resting on his shoulder. His strong arm enveloped me protectively, the mandibles nuzzling my hear

"Rest now, my mate, you need to recover before the fight"

"And if there is some news?"

"We will ready at the right moment. Now rest, I will keep watch over your dreams"

I smiled, kissing his skin and pressing my body against his as much as I could, not wanting to lose even the smallest crumb of this memory. I searched his hand, kissed his fingers and put it on my face, closing my eyes. I feel asleep with only one thought in mind: I will not lose him, and I challenged any god to stop me.

When I woke up, he wasn't at my side. I took a few minutes to recover and to allow my brain to think again; I felt relaxed and worried at the same time, focusing my thoughts to him and to our future. I really didn't know how I should feel, if satisfied for being sunk in soft furs after a very (oh so very) pleasurable sex or to be frozen for the terror. My mind was still fighting on this when Ne'veah returned, partially dressed in his armor. He looked at me intently, in silence

"Something happened, right?" I said, trying to hide my fear

"I just spoke to the priestess. The Elders…have accepted" I wondered if he felt how I felt, but for an instant I let my rage came out

"Hmpf! For those assholes is better to lose two alleged Badbloods instead of their reputation!" but when I saw him so surprised, and probably even offended, I sighed "I'm sorry, The Elders are only trying to protect the clan, but…you come first for me" I lowered my gaze with shame. He sat next to me, his hand that again stroked my skin, causing soft chills on my body. I moaned softly, abandoning myself to that pleasure for long minutes

"She is coming here" he said suddenly; I looked at him confused, he continued "the Priestess and my Master are coming here; we will meet Sain'ja under their protection. Probably we have a few hours"

"She? Here? Few hours? But we needed three days to arrive"

"It was necessary to not be detected, using the *** would have been very easy to intercept our ship"

"The what?"

"…a tunnel where the space-time is distorted and the molecules…"

"ok, ok! Few hours!" the realization sent a shiver on my back "we have only few hours…" I looked at him knowing that probably this will be the last moment of peace for us, the last instants to be just us.

The thought didn't abandon me neither during our bath together. It was different from the last time; even more…intimate. I was sitting on his lap, and he was washing my back, his big hands that could break or rip a head and that now so gently were traveling on my skin. We remained silent for a while, probably both sure that the words weren't necessary

"Hey…" I said softly, turning my head to him; our eyes met "…no jokes this time, ok? No chains" I half smiled. He didn't answer, just purred and continued his work on my back.

We were still wearing our armor when the signal arrived like the worst of my nightmares.


	26. Trapped

**Finally I'm back! I missed writing so much! I apologize, but work really kills me. Thanks for all of you, for the reviews and for still following my story. Thanks Kimah for the corrections. As always, help me to improve and leave me many other reviews!**

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It happened all too fast: the assault, the growls, the tugs and the capture. I was taken aback at first, and my mind had requested more time than necessary to understand what was going on; but soon the fear gave away to apprehension, followed shortly after by a strong, uncontrollable rage. Once again I was in dark about everything; once again I was reminded me of being trapped in a game bigger than me. Elise didn't talk about this in her message, except for the coordinates where we had to land. I knew she was doing her best to save us,and perhaps I shouldn't be surprise for some small compromise; but this…wasn't the "welcome" I expected.

First, the guards: four rude Yautja ready to smash your bones without thinking twice, their plasma cannons pointed to our heads and eager to get another trophy. They were upon us even before the tailgate had time to open completely, jumping on the ship and roaring furiously. Second, the frisk. I could still feel their hands that unceremoniously explored my body, growling some incomprehensible order in my ears, taking all the weapons I had. I didn't hope to meet Sain'ja in a meeting at par,and the decision to not wear heavy weapons was the sanest thing to do; but it was surprising how much I felt naked without even a single knife and the couple of bombs that Ne'veah gave me as further protection. And third, the chains. Those fucking chains. If our chances of escape were already low, they were now slim to none. Surely I wasn't a big trouble for them, the collar seemed to stay around my neck only to remind me of my position; but Ne'veah…that was another matter.

Probably the thing that hurt me more than anything else had been seeing him in complete submission. He never reacted, not even once, while they blocked and trapped him as the worst of the beast. Completely deprived of his armor, his arms locked behind his back and his feet tied so close to each other that he could barely only thing left in its place was his loincloth, even thought for a moment I believed that they would have taken even that. I knew perfectly I couldn't do anything, that it was the right thing to do. He was doing it for his clan and it was useless to try to resist, but this couldn't prevent my heart to tighten in a painful grip, to feel the humiliation, the shame of an honorable warrior forced to bow the head for a guilt he never committed. My hand instinctively searched his right arm, gently stroking it, while I took refuge in the safety of his chest, my skin that brushed his. My angry look went to two of the guards. They were doing something around our ship, I couldn't say what but surely wasn't something good for us. I couldn't resist for much longer

"I'm going to burst…" I whispered in a whimper, clenching my fists.

"It is all right, don't talk" his eyes went from me to the guards, still protecting me despite his condition.

One of the guards growled threatening, probably ordering the silence, walking around us like a hungry vulture, the wrist gauntlet we gave to him pending on his hip. Maybe I was too frustrated to control myself, or maybe it was his way of walk around us so unnerving, but I couldn't repress a sort of hiss in response, ignorning the obvious consequences. The guard stopped abruptly in front of me, turning his head slowly, giving me the time to feel his icy stare behind his mask. I could not say why he remained staring at me longer than necessary, whether in anger or surprise, but his deep growl made me realize that he was not pleased by my response.

He advanced towards me, pushing my heart to beat faster, but barely had the time to take the second step that Ne'veah growled louder, mandibles wide open and clicking frantically. My anger turned into concern as the growls grew louder and menacing, and I barely held back a sigh of relief when one of the hunters around the ship caught the attention of others, just when the Yautja in front of us was about to pull out the blades. They exchanged just a few incomprehensible words, grabbing Ne'veah's chains and pushing me at his side, before starting to move in the vegetation, surrounding us to prevent a possible escape. My gaze met Ne'veah's eyes

"Sorry" I said soundlessly, giving him a guilty look. He just shook his head, keeping his head bowed and watching the ground before him. It hurt so much to see him like this…

The trip has been short and terribly silent; soon the high walls of buildings appeared in front of us and we were escorted trough the city, with even more guards following us. The place was the same and at the same time it wasn't. The streets, the homes, even the same corridors and rooms that I've just been through one or two days before we arrived at their headquarter seemed so familiar and so strange at the same time. What once seemed amazing, impressive and…a home in some way, now was cold, harsh and intimidating. The glances that we met, those gazes so proud and fierce, impetuous and stiff, of females and males, full of disappointment, were and will remain in my memory forever.

This was to be a Yautja: not only brave, honorable, and righteous, but even impassive to pain, to clemency for traitors and pity for the enemies whoever they are. For the first time I really understood Ne'veah's feelings. I felt like I turned my back to my family, my friends, even myself. No matter how things had gone, the weight of this guilt seemed overwhelming, something for which it was worth to die. And he chose me. Me. Me! I looked Ne'veah with a new awareness.

"I love you" but I wasn't sure he could listen me.

The hall was full of warriors like the last time, and for now no trace of Elise and Ate'yo. Despite the number of those present, the silence was terribly heavy. We were escorted between them, right in the presence of the Elders. Sainj'a was dressed in his full red armor, rigidly standing in front of the crowd, the two other Elders at his sides. Our gaze met almost immediately, and the rage, sadness the regret to having been betrayed, hidden in those cold and impassive eyes, hit me like a straight punch in the stomach. He had welcomed me in his home, patiently listening to my pleas, offering his protection; and as thanks I was run off, believing the ravings of a bastard whose only purpose was to kill us. The weight of my remorse almost brought me to tears; I tried to say something that could be vaguely comparable to an apology, but he looked away, almost annoyed by my presence, focusing only to the sight in front of him.

The Elder on the right said something to the guards, and we were forced to face the crowd and on our were no insults or reproaches, the silence was more than enough of a humiliation. I kept my head down so as not to meet the cold masks of warriors, focusing on Ne'veah to find some comfort, until a roar not far attracted my attention. In that moment the doors opened and Elise and Ate'yo made their entrance, followed by a few members of their clan.

The sight left me speechless; yes, Ate'yo was impressive in his armor, but Elise really caught me off guard. So tiny and minute compared to her mate, and at the same time so incredibly…menacing.

She walked strong and stiff, a proud and determined look while the others bowed their head at their passing, her hair, gathered in small richly decorated braids, that swayed on her shoulders; the round belly was covered with a solid and durable plate of a material unknown to me, shining like the rest of her armor; and above all, four ferocious beasts surrounded her, full of fangs and protruding bones, vaguely comparable to large dogs. In that moment, it was really difficult for me to say that she was a human.

They arrived in front of the other Elders, bowing first their head and reciprocated with the same respect. Elise said something in their language, starting a short conversation with Sain'ja; after few seconds, one of the Elders made a nod and a guard took my arm and put me on my feet; she outstretched a hand to me, making me a sign to approach

"I hope they weren't that bad with you" she said while I came at her side, looking with disappointment my collar

"I expected something…different" it was the only answer I can gave her

"Any sign of the Badbloods?" she whispered with low voice to not be heard; I shook my head, she sighed

"I hope she is not telling you other lies, Priestess" Sain'ja's voice was flat, but that affirmation told everything about his new opinion about me; Elise looked at him with severe eyes as he continued "this dispute has been going on too long; it is useless to sacrifice many for the life of one. And now a member of my clan is dead and his wrist gauntlet brought here as evidence of his betrayal. We are still examining the device, but I'm sure we won't find anything"

"It is precisely to save the lives of many who continue on this path would be wrong. Allow us to reiterate our views" said Ate'yo.

Sain'ja started to talk in his language, voluntarily excluding me from the conversation, or at least it seemed to me. I couldn't understand anything, but probably it was all focused on the device, on Ne'veah, Li'ya and all the lies in this story. My eyes went on my mate, the head still bowed, bent on the ground and incredibly, almost unbearably, calm.

 _He was ready to die._

The thought arrived painfully to my mind; the death has never been so close and the sensation that it was all useless was growing minute by minute. I kept watching the incomprehensible conversation, feeling the need to have a part in it, but soon my gaze started to roam around the hall, on Elise, Sain'ja, the warriors, and the walls behind them.

 _I wanted to escape._

There had to be a way to save him; I didn't care about me, I wanted just to see him out of this place and completely safe. My eyes focused to the doors behind the Elders, foolishly thinking to try to flee, even loosing different minutes of stupid ideas about it. I was almost loosing myself in that reasoning when the door opened. A Yautja appeared silently and closed the door, remaining in front of it. The same happened with the other door. I sighed: other guards. I turned my eyes elsewhere to find another solution. And I didn't know why, but I had the impression that some of the warriors had moved further back than the others. No, it wasn't an impression, some of them seemed to form a second line behind the others. I looked to Sain'ja, only to see that one of the hunters near the door was slowly approaching to him. The plasma cannon…!

" ** _SAIN'JA BEHIND YOU!_** "

He turned.

Too late.


	27. Blades

**Unbelievable! I updated a chapter in less than two months! :P I hope you will enjoy it. As always thanks for all your support and to Kimah for the corrections. And don't leave me without a review ;)**

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White. That was all I could see. The dazzling light of the plasma explosion blinded me, and for a moment that seemed to stretch on forever, there was nothing but the burning of my eyes and the unbearable ringing of my ears. I continued to blink in the desperate attempt to see again, resisting the urge to rub my face for the discomfort. Slowly the figures around me began to take shape, as well as voices and sounds.

Roars. A flock of roars that rose as the worst of storms, piercing my head, sending painful shocks through my nerves. I had not even noticed that I was squatting on the ground until something grabbed me by the arm and forced me to stand up. The female voice screamed something, becoming clearer, and when my gaze finally met Elise her words punched me right in the guts

" **STAY BACK! AN AMBUSH!"**

The air abandoned my lungs, confusion and panic took over. I froze where I was, able only to look around frantically, catching only glimpses of what was happening: a body lying on the ground, a warrior that pierced his companion with his blades, Elise's hand on her belly, and… _Ne'veah!_

The cry caught in my throat. He was on his back on the floor, his arms outstretched to the maximum, trying with the chains around his wrists to block the sharp knife just a few centimeters form his head. The other hunter was towering over him, his legs blocked that of Ne'veah. My legs thought before my head: I started running in his direction, perfectly conscious I was completely unarmed and defenseless, and yet I didn't stop. But before I could do something, a massive Yautja passed me and almost threw himself against the one who was attacking Ne'veah, hitting his jaw with a forceful, and surely painful, fist. Almost I could hear the sound of the breaking bones as the Badblood, and I was sure they were Badbloods, fell violently to the ground. I was right behind the big Yautja, and when he turned I recognized Ate'yo's face.

He quickly extended his wrist blades, and with a powerful blow broke the chains around Ne'veah's wrists, then giving him his spear. Before I could say anything, Ate'yo unceremoniously grabbed my arm and threw me against Ne'veah, growling something in his own language. Ne'veah didn't have time to reply, just extended the spear, brought me close to his chest, using his body like a shield, and blocked the attack of another enemy. I was trapped in his arm, too shocked to move. He gave just a couple of blows, before a spear came out from nowhere and hit the Badblood on the shoulder, making him howling in pain. I looked quickly on my right side, seeing a pale Yautja with the arm still outstretched for the launch. Ne'veah took the occasion to pierce the Badblood right in the neck, and the green blood gushed everywhere, making me feel nauseous. He withdrew the spear, then hit more times the chains at his feet to free himself. With me still in his embrace, he turned to Ate'yo, who was in the middle of a fight, growling something.

Ate'yo rejected the blade of the enemy in front of him, and for me it was like there was a fortress protecting us from the rest of the battle. Still fighting, he turned quickly and threw something right towards me; I grabbed the object, cutting my fingers with the knife I found in my hands, surprised to say the least. And then he blurted in the most ferocious roar I ever heard, so strong to hurt my ears. It was directed to us, but even the enemies seemed intimidated for that sudden rage. My eyes met with his, an intense and unreadable gaze, before Ne'veah grabbed my waist, fast and painful as a blow to the stomach, and put me on his shoulder, starting to run away from the battle.

I couldn't see anything, I only felt he hit something and then rushed out of the hall and along the corridor of the fortress. I tried to use his back as a support, in the desperate effort to breath normally again, as a river of confused thoughts invaded my mind: we were escaping, why, Elise was still there, her baby…

"Ne'veah what are you doing!" finally I was able to talk again

"Orders" he simply said. I would have ask him a thousand of things: we did it, maybe in the worst way, but we proved the infiltration of the Badbloods in the clan. Yet, escaping right know wasn't the wisest thing to do. We have been through too much to not think about the possible consequences of this action. Besides, how can we just leave when the others were fighting? In a blink of an eye we were already out of the headquarters

"Oh my…" I wanted to cry, but the shock was too much: the fight was even out of the building, shots of plasma everywhere, together with the clung of the weapons and the roars. And yet Ne'veah didn't stop, avoiding each blow and Yautja in front of him

"We can't leave! We can't leave, Ne'veah!" I punched him in the back, trying to free myself in each way even if it was too obvious I couldn't "We have to think about something! Anything! But we have to stop!"

"We can't do anything for now"

"We have to try!" I pleaded, forgetting the fear and the danger, but he stopped responding. The buildings became increasingly distant, and more we were far, the more I felt the pain in my heart grew, for the guilt of not being able to something and the thought that all that suffering in part was my fault. I pleaded more and more times, until my voice became a whisper and I gave myself up on his shoulder, clutching the knife in despair. I lost the track of time, and when finally Ne'veah slowed his pace, I slipped from his shoulder in his embrace, even if he kept walking fast

"We have to warn my clan, and I have to retrieve my weapons. The Elder Ate'yo said he will make sure my ship will be available. It's the only thing we can do" he wasn't looking at me, and I knew he was about to say something that I would not like it at all

"And it's better if you remain on the ship; you are not able to face a battle like this, you are too weak to do it"

Rude and straight to the point, just in case I had the intention to answer back. But even if he was right, I just couldn't accept it; gently I circled his neck with my arms, holding me tight to him

"We have to end this together, we said that we will go through this together"

"This is different. You saw the fight, you saw the chaos; I couldn't protect you in that massacre"

"I don't want to lose you…" I moaned in pain, unable to accept the events

"And I will not lose y…"

Ne'veah suddenly roared loud and let me fall on the ground. I was able to land on my feet, surprising myself for my reflexes. My attention immediately went to Ne'veah, bent forward and holding his shoulder, growling furiously. Blood. My guts reacted almost immediately to the sight, contracting in a mixture of rage and pain. I looked around just in time to see a flying object disappearing in the forest, and the instant after seeing an armored Yautja uncloaking and charging in our direction!

 **"** **Ne'v…"** he pushed me away and I fell badly on the ground, but not before seeing him charge in turn against the other hunter, in a noise of roaring and metal. I quickly got up and recover the knife, holding it near my panting chest, terrorized to say the least for the sight in front of me.

I've already seen Ne'veah fight, his skills and ability, the image of him covered in blood when he saved me still impressed in my memory. But now it was different, we were in broad daylight and he was deprived of his armor except for the spear lying on the ground. He was fighting with only his bare hands, his muscles strained at the most to hold on and attack the opponent, tearing his flesh, pushing him back far from me. It was like to watch a deadly beast, fierce and uncontrolled. The other hunter was no exception, but he had his weapons, and for what I could understand he doesn't seem so inexperienced. The wrist blades appeared few seconds later, scratching Ne'veah's chest, stealing him more blood.

This pushed me to act: I quickly reached the spear, not as heavy as I expected, and I threw it towards Ne'veah with all the strength I have. It wasn't a good launch, but he rolled on the left and grabbed it just in time to block the blades, and yet he couldn't avoid the kick that arrived on his side, forcing him to his knee and receiving a punch on his face. I cursed angrily, but I froze when the Badblood turned to me, the plasma cannon already charging to strike. I started running diagonally, and the blow arrived just a few meters behind. When my gaze turned to the fight, I saw Ne'veah again on him, his right hand attempted to break the cannon, the other blocking the blades.

And the Bablood acted only like one of his race could: he gave him a head butt right on his tusks, braking them and kicking him again in the stomach. I screamed even louder when his blades pierced him on one side. Again I ran against the danger, the knife in my hand, the fear and desperation mixed together. Ne'veah roared towards me but I ignored it, and I couldn't prevent the smack that hit my face. I fell again on the ground, tasting the savor of my own blood. My vision was blurred, the pain so terrible that I wondered if my mandible was still in its place. In tears, I saw the Badblood growling and forcing Ne'veah on the ground, throwing far away the spear and starting to hit him repeatedly, but even waiting a little between a blow and the other, as Ne'veah tried to get up, the blood that flowed profusely from his wound. That asshole was having fun with him, humiliating him, waiting is weak reactions to push him again down; there was no honor in this, only the joy to torture him.

Ne'veah; my love, my mate. This was too much to endure. I got up despite the pain, weak and desperate, taking advantage of his distraction. Still crying I advanced behind him, focusing on his hips, the only part not covered from the metal. I took the knife with both hands, lifting it on my head to charge the blow as much as I can. I hit the right hip, the horrible sensation of the cut flesh invading my arms. The Badblood stopped abruptly to hit Ne'veah as the knife entered only for the half of his length inside his body.

For a few seconds, nothing happened, the bastard simply stayed still where he was. I was frozen too, but quickly I put myself together and I started to retrieve the knife. The hunter reacted immediately after. He turned quickly and hit me violently on the wrist, causing again and unbearable pain, the sound of bones breaking. I didn't have time to cry nor to scream, because he grabbed me by the neck and lifted me off the ground, taking my breath away. I opened my mouth in search of air, blinking more times in tears as he just watched me, probably enjoying my pain. His hand went to his mask, slowly removing the tubs connected to it, showing me his face

"You don't know when give up, don't you?" his expression turned into an amused grin

Despite the suffering and the lack of hair, I couldn't restrain myself

"Y-you fuc-king bastard…" he laughed as I took another gulp of air "I-I knew it was you…"


	28. Old Scars

**Hi to everyone! I'm so happy to be back! I know, long time passed and I'm sorry if someone that was waiting with so much trepidation another chapter is now disappointed. My life and my work are really putting me upside down. I hope that each of you is ok, and I thank all the people who appreciate my work so much to leave me a review, I listen to all your advice and suggestions. As always, if you find some really horrible mistake please let me notice, and help me with my English. Thank you again, and I hope you enjoy!**

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Ne'veah was growling. I couldn't see him, trapped as I was, only hear his weak roars that so strenuously attempted to sound threatening and that each time stabbed my heart when they were silenced by a vicious kick, as the Badblood kept him on the ground. He kicked him, so much I lost count, as the tears that started falling from my eyes. And each blow resounded in my ears like a nightmare, until the silence fell on us. Was…was he dead? _My Ne'veah was dead?_

"Ne-ve-ah…" I stammered, the suffering unbearable. As if he noticed only now I was still in his grip, the Yautja turned to me. My gaze focused on him, fueling a rage hidden only from the pain I was bearing

"Da-cha-nde…" I wanted to say his name with all the hatred I could muster, but it turned out just pathetic. Dachande said nothing, just kept watching the suffering on my face with those cruel and crazy eyes, his mandibles twisted into an amused grin. I couldn't understand how I could have been so idiot in believing a Yautja I barely knew, but this was the last of my problems now.

His grip tightened around my throat, suddenly and painfully, sending sparks of pure terror along my body. I barely realized that my mouth opened wide in the desperate need of air, an unconscious and automatic gesture, as in that moment there was nothing else except the burning of my lungs, the pain on my neck, and the darkness that was making its way through my eyes. And when I thought I was going to faint, that this was the end of everything, and total despair began to slowly creep into my head, his fingers loosened the grip, and the air came back. I coughed violently, feeling the urgent need to vomit, panting heavily; but the relief lasted too short. I got just the time to take two breaths that again my throat was caught in a steel trap, again bringing me near the darkest abyss. And again, and again. The torture was exhausting, more in my mind than in my body. I was scared, for Ne'veah, for me, for the clan, and the only comfort were the tears that kept falling

"Disgusting _lou-dte kale_ " his deep ad guttural voice pierced my mind like a nail "I'll take my time to have my revenge on you"

My body instinctively shivered for the fear. He brought me the nearest tree, and I heard the sound of my bones cracking when he slammed me against the bark. My cry was instantly muffled by his hand on my face; his claws pressed on my already broken mandible, clutching my cheeks so hard that the pain could make me faint. I could no longer contain the sobs, feeling helpless, humiliated, and useless. _Ne'veah, Ne'veah_ ….

"It would have been almost funny" started the bastard, in a nightmarish growl "a pathetic weak Ooman able to ruin my plans. You should have stayed on your little miserable planet" the grin appeared again on his face "now die in pain"

I could not scream, I could not talk. When the blades appeared in front of me, despite the fear, the only thought was that death would be the right punishment for my mistakes. I failed. I failed in front of Elise, Ate'yo, Sain'ja…my Ne'veah. I could do nothing; I always knew I could do nothing, I tried but it wasn't enough. Desperately I forced to move my limbs for a last, extreme defense, not knowing what to do, only thinking about my love. The pain became even bigger when I realized that my body did not respond to me. The End. Game Over. Tears still there. I just closed my eyes and prepare myself

" _Look me Ooman! I want you to look at me when I will kill you!"_ he forced my face up, lifting me off the ground. I weakly obeyed, conscious I couldn't refuse, loosing myself in that amber orbs, seeing how much he was enjoying every single drop of my pain. The blades were dancing between us, as if it had to decide what part strike first. The grin never leaved his face

"Good girl" he rumbled satisfied, his voice slowly turning in to a whisper "but not enough" he leaned towards me, his breath caressing my face. The repulsion pervaded me as the mandibles touched my cheeks, and the warmth of his body got closer and closer. A chill ran down my body when his tongue licked my ear. No, no…

" _I'm not Dachande"_

… _What?_

There was no time for another thought. He released me and let me fall on the ground, and I barely had the time to look the grass that his hand was on me again, grabbing my hair and violently pulling up, stealing me another cry. I was panting heavily for the pain, my eyes focused on him

"I surprised you I suppose" he openly laughed "my stupid brother did an excellent job"

My eyes went wide. What? How?

"Sei-I, someone could have noticed it" he advanced my question "but how, after all I should be dead…" a deep, guttural rumble resounded in the air "…I was there when Li'ya was killed"

The pieces suddenly came back in their places. _Twins_. There were two twins with Li'ya; one was Dachande, the other this Yautja. I didn't know how he survived in the fight with Ne'veah, but it didn't matter; what was important was that the enemy has always been between us, hiding with another identity; and Li'ya…has been sacrificed for the purposes of this motherfucker!

"That's the expression I wanted to see" he rumbled amused, bringing the knife under my throat "Be prepared, I'll be sl…"

I spat on his face. The gesture was terribly painful, I could feel my mandible swell and hot, but I couldn't restrain myself. His astonished gaze was for me an immense satisfaction, but was immediately replaced by a fire of anger. His mandibles spread wide, growling, and his chest was preparing a roar that would haunt my sleep for many nights. But it didn't happen.

Another roar exploded in the air, and the bastard barely avoided the blow pointed to his head, that crashed his plasma cannon. Ne'veah turned the arm and hit his one, and I fell again on the ground, finally free from his grip. Ne'veah! _My Ne'veah!_ The joy was stronger than any pain. Other blows arrived, and his opponent was forced to step back and take the distance, giving both the time to take a breath. The relief for seeing him lasted short; a second look showed me the gravity of the situation: he was seriously injured, covered with bruises and deep scratches, and the wound in his side showed no signs of stop bleeding. His right arm was twisted in an unnatural position, and when he turned to me the bones of the mandibles dangled as ornaments on the mouth.

Our eyes met, and thousands of emotions shocked my body, before his roar resounded in the forest, charging the opponent for another round. I wanted to scream, to beg him to not go, but I suffocated it. He was a hunter, he was fighting for me and for his clan; there was no escape from this, and if I had to die, I would do it alongside my mate.

 _The knife._

My mind immediately went to the weapon, forcing my head to turn and search it. Every move was a pain, even worse when I tried to get up, but I pushed myself to be quick, to be fast. I found and took the knife with my left hand, trying to not look to my right wrists and the big purple stain on it, focusing only to the fight. Ne'veah was trying to keep the distance, probably avoiding another clinch, the spear clanging against the blades. And I...froze. What could I do? I tried to attack the Badblood and I failed; I wasn't a huntress, or a fighter. In that battle of giants, I was little more than an annoying insect. My legs were trying to push me to go, my mind was stopping them, and my heart was bleeding as each blow of the Badblood went closer and closer to my mate. I stood there, petrified, a mixture of terror and rage corroding my guts, feeling so useless and with the unique desire to take that spear and put it right in his fucking...

The idea arrived almost unexpected. The spear, sure. It was impossible to attack, not directly and not with Ne'veah in those conditions, not when the bastard had the defense so high. But the spear was longer than the blades. It was enough a distraction, only a little distraction...I looked the fight again, but my eyes moved over, around the forest, the trees and the rocks. I found what I was looking for, and again, for the umpteenth time since this story started, I ran.

* * *

His twisted arm burned like hell, but Ne'veah gave a little attention to it

"Ne'veah, the tree!" he heard her voice just in time to see her figure disappearing behind a large group of bashes, incapable to understand what she was doing.

His heart contracted painfully, letting him know the arrival of all the new sensations he was experimenting ultimately: quick breath, high blood pressure and pain in the stomach. In other words: love. In his entire life he never felt something like this, something that went against all his primal instincts. With Li'ya, as a mate, he had the duty to protect her, and care for her pups; but with Jessica it was all different. It was not a duty, not an instinct, but the simple as unbelievable _need_ to not lose her. And now, in front of his enemy, despite his conditions, he felt an energy he didn't understand completely. Not only rage, not only willpower, just…love, and concern for her safety.

Ne'veah forced himself to watch the other Yautja right in the eyes, not spreading his mandibles to prevent additional damages. He couldn't show weakness in front of the enemy. Yeyinde; that was once his name, someone he believed to be a hunting companion and an honorable member of Sain'ja's clan, someone he believed dead by his hand and that now stood proud and mocking beside him.

The memories of that day flowed inside him as clear as painful: Li'ya's sharp talons on him, his spear trough her body, the blood, his knife sank in Yeyinde's stomach, a very fortunate strike, and the escape when he activated the bomb on his wrist gauntlet. Ne'veah started to think that it was a sort of plan B, pretending his death after the failing of his plans; but this didn't matter anymore. He was here now, giving him the opportunity to finally get his spinal column.

Slowly, silently, they started to circle each other. No words about the past, or about the reasons, just the burning desire to take another trophy. Ne'veah held the spear in front of his chest in defense, searching the right moment to attack. He knew he had to do the first move, the wound on his side was bleeding profusely; his opponent could simply watch while he died from blood loss. Still moving, he glanced quickly the environment around him, a blur of trees and vegetation. Where the _pauk_ was Jessica? What was she sa… _oh_. Behind his enemy's back there was a large tree inclined forward, not much but enough to give him some problem to move. With the arm in that condition, even the fact that the other Yautja couldn't stand straight could make the difference between life and death.

A long, slow breath; and then, with all the strength he was capable, Ne'veah charged against him, lifting the spear above the head. As thought, Yeyinde was unimpressed, and in response prepared the blades. What he didn't expect was Ne'veah retracting the spear and throwing himself on him, grabbing his waist with the good arm, and starting to push him back roughly. It was a risky move; the Yeyinde's arms were still free and could hit him as soon as he could again get the balance, but for now it was the only choice. When he started to resist, Ne'veah let him go and extended again the spear, using it to push him against the trunk. His plans didn't go as he hoped, the wounds made him too slow. After two or three other steps back, Yeyinde extended the blades and started to counterattack, quickly and mercilessly. The blows were repeated incessantly; Ne'veah's muscles started to burn for the effort, and he almost lost the spear with the last strike. Yeyinde took his occasion, grabbing the spear with a hand and pushing back. They remained in that position of stalemate for a time that to Ne'veah seemed eternal, his face tired and exhausted against the mocking one of his enemy

"You are suffering, young hunter; you're just denying the inevitable" his grinned amused, pushing the spear downward and forcing Ne'veah almost on his knees "Why don't you simply die? It was your destiny from the beginning"

"So it was yours" Ne'veah growled, his arm less and less capable to support the stress "but I'll not be a coward like you"

"So, you admit your faith" a rumble came from his chest, his voice turning in a low growl "It will be a pleasure to put an end to your agony"

The blades hit his stomach, piercing him, tearing his flash. The roar choked in his throat, and a knee was forced on the ground. Ne'veah could barely breathe, trying to stay still despite the pain. The cold metal brushed his neck. _**No!**_ It couldn't be over! Not now. Not yet.

"Die you…" a loud thud arrived at Ne'veah's ears, followed with a cry and a roar. His vision was starting already to blur, but what he could saw left him speechless.


End file.
